


What Lies Ahead: Unmasked

by 127ghouls



Series: What Lies Ahead [5]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Action, Angst, Blood and Gore, Character Death, M/M, Mafia AU, Murder, Organized Crime, Romance, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-10
Updated: 2020-03-10
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:13:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 135,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23091622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/127ghouls/pseuds/127ghouls
Summary: Cruel intentions hide behind sparkling masks.
Relationships: Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten/Suh Youngho | Johnny, Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Lee Taeyong
Series: What Lies Ahead [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1241678
Comments: 41
Kudos: 201





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This work has two (2) endings. 
> 
> Please ignore grammatical errors, misspellings and other inaccuracies because only Google helped me with this. I also tweaked some facts to fit the plot - they call it artistic/creative license, for real.
> 
> Proofreading is not in my vocabulary and I know my flaws so please avoid constructive criticisms in the comments unless asked. 
> 
> WARNING: TOP!ETHAN  
> Thank you!

“How many more hours should I stand here and endure intrusive gazes while I pretend not to be irked?” Taeyong mutters to himself, lips gently pressed against the flute of champagne. He tilts it slightly, letting the alcohol lick across his moist lips before a gulp of it soon disappears completely in the warmth of his crass mouth. “Truly, I am not designed for pretentious events. Yet I need to be here, don’t I?”

Together with the peculiar one-sided conversation and a rumble of deep laughter in his chest, the heat that the champagne brings spreads all over. He takes a swift glance across the room and spots an air conditioner, mentally cursing at whoever positioned it at such a disadvantageous spot – only because he’s not there. Maybe if he forces himself to move…

“Why would I, shouldn’t I just order someone to move it?”

“Move what, sir?”

Taeyong side-eyes the waiter. The man is carrying a tray of empty champagne glasses, eyes trained on him as though waiting for him to answer.

“It’s fucking hot,” he says, finishing his drink and handing it to the man. Truth be told, he’s had more than what’s healthy since the start of the charity gala. “Do I strike you as someone who can’t handle the poor temperature in a supposedly extravagant event? Because that is going to make me a finicky person, right? I’ll have you know I’m not that kind of man. I can make do with what’s available.”

In the midst of his nonsense rambling, the man winces, clearly realizing he’s dealing with a drunk, rich donor. He doesn’t have a choice but to entertain said drunk, rich donor, though.

So without much of a choice, the poor waiter stays and lets the wealthy, privileged men and women just come to get their own drinks. At this point, no one cares if they are served properly.

“The thing is,” Taeyong continues, eyes wandering around and purposely ignoring the look of a highly significant individual a few feet away from him with an elegant lady in his hold. “I’m too tired to move to the other side. Are the organizers that generous to give all the money to the orphaned children and pocketing a little bit of it for a better venue to accommodate high profiled guests is…too much for their obviously murky conscience? To invite a hundred people and have a barely functioning air-conditioning system… Isn’t it ridiculous?”

“Sir, uh…”

“I understand. Go do your job. Do your own thing. Moving around will make you sweat, may I remind you. I’m just standing here for two hours and I’m already sweating. Do you mind if I take my blazer off right in front of everyone?”

From the corner of his eyes, he can see Jaehyun end the dance with his partner and make way to him. Taeyong still doesn’t meet the other’s gaze; he’s free to deny the younger a fraction of attention for a second, and fixes his eyes on the waiter instead. The man looks like he just wants to flee right there and then. “Not too forward and shameless, I suppose.”

“Is something the matter?”

Jaehyun finally arrives, fixing the loose strand of hair over his forehead. With a natural sweep of nimble fingers, he looks gorgeous; pleasing to the eyes, attention-seeking in a sense that he attracts it without meaning to.

He smiles kindly at the waiter, understanding the situation after a careful and quick observation. Taeyong is well on his way to being drunk out of his head though composed. Sooner or later he will be spewing out things everyone unlucky enough to hear will swear to curse. “You can leave; you don’t have to go through this hell. That’s not in your job description.”

“Thank you so much, sir. Champagne?”

Jaehyun accepts the offer and inhales the smell of expensive alcohol. Next to him, Taeyong finally graces him with the attention he deserves, that the other childishly refused to give earlier. “What did that man ever do to you? He looked like he’s close to resigning.”

“I suggested he should move me wherever is cool. Don’t you feel hot? Maybe if you were as perceptive as you think you are, you’d notice I’m halfway through taking my blazer off. And the dress shirt.”

“Keep the dress shirt on. It’s expensive, worth wearing. The floor can take it if it’s merely a few dollars.”

“You talk like you’d run out of it if I burn this piece of shit, Jaehyun.” The long-haired man grumbles, cold eyes piercing through the other with so little patience working in his body. “I like it when you humble yourself. Wasn’t it just more or less two months ago when you refused to give up the headquarters in Korea, ‘cause someone fully capable and greedy like you could handle two? Could you really? Now, we have someone who feels bad wasting a thousand-dollar shirt.”

Jaehyun grimaces, putting his empty glass down the table. “Because I like it on you.” He reaches down to slap Taeyong’s thigh, pushing him to stand straight. The latter’s almost sliding off the table he’s leaning on. “The chairs are in that area. Why do you suffer willingly?”

“I wanted to watch you dance.”

The song changes. Gentle, compelling strums of violin fill the room and old, orchestra permeates their nostalgic senses. It is not Taeyong’s kind of music. Heavy metal screams for him to listen.

“How’s dancing? Practicing once a day really helped you in the department.”

“Well…” The younger kingpin shrugs, eyes going back to the lady he last asked to dance. “That wasn’t so bad. Rich people holding these charity events to somehow conceal their true intentions with a little sprinkle of generosity and kindness to the less fortunate seem to appear less pretentious when you try to talk to them. I think they’re good actors. Though I believe some of them are genuine.”

Taeyong taps a finger on the table. “Rewind.”

An eyebrow raised, Jaehyun tilts his head in confusion. “Rewind what?”

“You said something about true intentions.” Taeyong finally gives up and saunters over to the cushioned seats with his husband in tow, groaning in relief when his ass hits the comfortable chairs. “Fuck, standing for two hours was a mistake. Am I getting old, Jaehyun? Do I look old to you?”

The younger intentionally scans Taeyong from head to toe slowly, nodding. “You do.”

“Fuck you.”

“Maybe tomorrow. What were you saying about intentions?”

Annoyance flips on Taeyong’s face like a switch, and Jaehyun knows not to push his buttons again. “You need to elucidate on _that_ ‘cause I had a little bit of alcohol in my system and my ability to register faux intelligence blurs in the process.” He eventually removes the blazer, tossing it to Jaehyun. “What the fuck is wrong with my body, why is it so hot?”

“How much have you drunk?” Jaehyun folds the fabric and hangs it on his forearm.

Taeyong shakes his head. “Too much for you to handle. At least they rained on the alcohol, huh? But it’s so fucking hot. Is this hell, Jaehyun? Is this hell?”

“No, it’s not. But…you didn’t just call me an idiot, right? I know you didn’t. Someone who has millions of dollars in his name cannot be a moron.”

“Yet here you are.” The blue-eyed man deadpans wryly.

If they weren’t in such an important event that ups their reputation, especially Taeyong’s, he’d probably be socking the guy’s jaw by now. He accepted the fact long ago that this is going to be their eternal dynamics, with Taeyong being a vocal nuisance and Jaehyun the recipient of such vocal harassment. Not that he usually minds, yet he’s not in the mood to bicker like kids with his 30-year-old husband at the moment.

If he throws a punch or two, will Taeyong remember it tomorrow? What kind of alcohol did he even drink for him to be buzzed?

“Ever so sweet.” He sighs exasperatedly. Being with Taeyong is like being with an unrefined adult for six hours, an arrogant genius for another six, and a brat for the remaining half of the day. The second kingpin should really invest on using his brain for better things, like…acting like a grown up. “So, the true intentions… Why should I even explain it? It’s not like you don’t know.”

“We digressed from the topic that you don’t know what to say anymore, that’s the truth. But…” Taeyong pauses, literally pauses, with his movements halting as though he malfunctioned temporarily. And then he sits up straight, thumb now incessantly bitten as he stares ahead.

“I do know what you are trying to say. Everyone just wants to flaunt their riches. Make connections for a greater good in their standards. And maybe you know, just score a fuck and go – as simple as that. You don’t even need to be somebody to be here. You can just be a plus one like that guy over there who’s probably on his third round at the buffet table. Shows on his struggling belt. But the thing is that knowledge of yours is stereotypical. We are included in the rich people you are pertaining to with their intentions. Do we belong in any of the categories I mentioned? But first of all, do we have a say here? We don’t, but we choose to give one.”

Even in an intoxicated state, Taeyong still manages to make sense.

And after replaying everything as much as possible in his head, Jaehyun agrees. “Got the point across. Bull’s eye. We don’t need to do any of that.”

“Exactly. We are the only people here who are a hundred times filthier than all attendees combined. Trust me, I know. Only the Bordeaux donors are here right now. And my intention is to maintain a friendship.” Taeyong firmly nods as though trying to convince himself and not Jaehyun, still staring menacingly at some space, at no one in particular. A speck of dust also deserves a wordless threat, certainly. “Can you believe that, Jaehyun? Me and friendship in a sentence. It only worked out twice in my whole life.”

“I guess so…”

“You know so. I befriend the kind that these oblivious commoners can’t comprehend.”

On a second thought, Jaehyun probably shouldn’t have let that waiter go. To talk to Taeyong for an hour wouldn’t hurt that man so much. Jaehyun’s daily life consists of dealing with a stubborn brat and whenever he reminds himself of this fact, he thinks nobody has the right to complain about anything – quite literally.

Yet it is the same insufferable brat he wishes to spend the rest of his life with. He got himself into this. Why is he still complaining?

_Complaining doesn’t mean I hate it. It’s the dynamic now._

“Fine, fine.” Like usual, he yields. “I get it. But you should really _elucidate_ on that claim.” His timbre is full of mockery, imitating the older man’s words earlier.

A few have already steered out of harm’s way aka Taeyong’s misplaced chilling glare. He notices a fairly old woman give him a stink eye and so he looks at Jaehyun again, leg bouncing and thumb still stuck in his mouth. “Who are you to tell me what to do? I don’t usually make friends and when I do, you definitely know why.”

A creepy smile that doesn’t reach his eyes appears on Taeyong’s face. It’s the smile of _his kind._ Jaehyun supposes his head is starting to gradually sober up. “So how’s keeping up with the heterosexual front? That lady looked smitten. Is that the kind of friend you are making here? I kinda feel sorry for you both.” Mischief overshadows the blue in Taeyong’s eyes. “You think she’d still have that blissed out face if she knew you shove it up the ass?”

Ah, here they go again. He started to notice it when he dropped Taeyong at the asylum. The latter has a penchant for embarrassing him by outing him to strangers. That should be a total dick move, but whoever dares to expect remorse from Taeyong shall be chastised in his stead. “You wouldn’t dare. She works for the Motion Twin.”

The lack of recognition befalls the caramel-head. “Do we fuck with that?”

“No? At least not yet? Who knows what the future holds?”

“I take that as a never. What’s her name?

“Valerine Mills.”

“Okay. Miss Valerine Mills?”

 _Fuck._ Here it goes.

Said lady is just walking by when she hears her name being called quite loudly. Seeing that she has caught a big shot’s attention, she has no problem coming over to interact with the businessman known for being an investor in _Château Mouton Rothschild._

“Oh,” she feigns surprise, a dainty hand on her chest, the top of her breasts exposed by the ocean blue low-cut sparkly dress that hugs her voluptuous figure. Her big eyes cast Jaehyun a polite glance before zeroing in on the long-haired man. “Ethan Lee! _C’est un plaisir de vous rencontrer–”_

“Is it?” Taeyong rudely interrupts, causing her bright smile to waver. But she schools her expression expertly like meeting disrespectful personalities is what she does on a daily. “I have a rather personal concern, you see,” he continues, gesturing for her to sit next to him. Jaehyun frowns a little at the sight. “I hope you do not mind invasive questions?”

Valerine Mills chuckles lightheartedly, shaking her head. “I don’t mind. Though, why does this seem like being put in the hot seat?”

Blue eyes just stare unblinkingly at her for a few seconds, starting an awkward atmosphere. When she’s about to open her mouth, that’s when Taeyong drops the question.

“Do you fancy this man on my left?”

“Taeyong!” Jaehyun bristles at him. “Stop talking.”

Of course, she does not expect the straightforward question. She barely knows Jeong Jaehyun, the gentleman that held her in the dance floor as though she was a delicate flower. He’s new in the circle, told her he just settled in the country. For a man of his caliber, Ethan Lee sure knows everyone in here despite being a generally quiet and private person, right? The two must be friends. Why else would he ask something that only mischievous matchmakers do?

Is she easy to read, is that it? Does it look like she’s desperate? Valerine muses while she weighs the situation.

Ethan Lee really is peculiar, based on the stories she heard and now that he’s in front of her.

Concealing the internal turmoil, she clears her throat and absently fixes her curls, a force of habit when put in a tricky position. “That’s so frank, I must say.” She takes in Jaehyun’s face, interpreting it wrongly. “He’s a lovely friend. But we just got acquainted…”

“So acquaintances,” the Red Phoenix owner hums under his breath, now suddenly completely sober. How he does it, Jaehyun doesn’t know. “You can’t call an acquaintance a friend. Those are not the same. Anyway, do you like homosexuals? Like, you wanna bed them?”

Redness coats the woman’s face, spreading down her neck and chest. The humiliation must be too much for her to take. Her lips quiver, a sign of anxiety. “I am not getting the point, no–” Valerine peers at the man she was supposed to talk to before she was called, hoping that she gets saved from the difficult spot she put herself in.

Taeyong grins, smile wide but empty. Valerine can almost see through his hollow soul and for some reason, though the venue is packed, a chilling sensation crawls down her spine.

The stories are real, so it seems. Ethan Lee is not to be messed with, regardless if you are to blame or not, if you actually sinned or not. “Thought so. You are not the type to go for princely, Asian men. I know.” Taeyong leans in, invading her personal space. She does not make a move to lean away so his next words are heard clear and precise, and her embarrassment worsens tenfold. “Jaehyun likes men.”

Now, she’s not a homophobe. Valerine Mills may be an opportunist, inviting herself in a gala that only her boss should be a part of, all for the sake of boasting the face she thinks is rarely seen in Bordeaux, but she’s not judgmental. It only pains her a bit because she feels toyed with. If Jaehyun is not interested in her, why did Ethan even bother?

Valerine smiles despite the apparent, deliberate ridicule. God, she hates men. “How do you know though?” And then, she continues it with an opinion she isn’t asked of. “For what it’s worth, you may be kidding me.”

“Do I look like I kid.” Taeyong states, face now devoid of feelings. Jaehyun looks around to check if anyone has picked up the unwanted tension. “Mademoiselle, why do you think I haven’t found a wife yet?”

It takes several seconds for realization to dawn on her. Taeyong almost pities the woman. He takes her hand and brings it to his lips, planting a tender kiss on the back of it. “That’s right. I am not a bachelor. If you think I’d apologize for not wearing my ring, then you are mistaken. I simply do not wear it in events like this because all of you will just flock for gossips. Being stared at is enough.”

She attempts to pull her hand but Taeyong tightens his hold. “Do not deny. Have you not looked at Jaehyun when you were dancing? Of course not, because both of you were looking at me. Such an attractive man, I understand. Trapped you under my spell, too. I am not a jealous person, Valerine. But I am also not a fan of sharing. Now, wipe that look off of your face unless you want to cause a scene. I don’t have a problem making a mess, though.”

And with one last derisive smirk, he swiftly takes a card peeking out of her cleavage. “Thanks.”

Without an ounce of image to save, she scampers away, swatting the hand of a waiter offering her a drink. The glass breaks in pieces, eliciting noises of shock from witnesses.

Jaehyun rubs his face in disbelief as the party resumes. “You only have guts to slam an entire company because you know we’re just as rich. Actually, you are far richer after bagging your father’s assets. If she decides to sue you, you’re on your own.”

Taeyong pins him a knowing look. Any trace of being drunk gone. “If she sues me, she can meet me in the fight club. That’s where we settle disputes. You know for yourself nothing of that will happen. And even if I’m dirt poor I can slam a motherfucker in a,” he snaps his fingers, laughing all the while, “snap. We can do it without money talking. You only need me by your side. You remember, right? How I settle things? Plus why are you chatting people up?”

The knife thrower squints at the card in his hand containing her contact details, flicking it to Jaehyun’s direction. “You’re not trying to put your name out there, are you? This scene is mine. You’re popular enough in the underground. In Bordeaux, you’re no one. Some of these shitheads know you as my partner. In paper and in bed. If you wanna recruit possible clients for our legal jobs, you have to give my name, not yours.”

The truth will always come out, out of the liar’s mouth. Marrying Jaehyun for companionship may be half the truth, but Taeyong will always want to show him he’s second, always second. In Taeyong’s agenda, gloating comes first. Selfishness. Arrogance. Grandiose self-esteem. He needs an outlet for his emotional manipulation.

Yet behind every evil trait is that one good that Jaehyun is very much into. He likes Taeyong because he _is_ Taeyong. It’s official. Jaehyun is just as sick. He doesn’t want cure.

He snorts, amusement dancing in his eyes. “Is that jealousy I smell? You told her you weren’t jealous, but you can’t always _not_ be jealous when you have a gorgeous husband. And I gave your name to Valerine. Turned out she already knows you. Who wouldn’t? The candies are making so much noise.”

The arrogance disappears from Taeyong’s face, replaced with pure disbelief. “Hey, that’s just a rumor. I kept talking about building a chocolate factory. How did it become candies? Really, people do not know how to relay information now?”

And just like that the second kingpin oozes childish innocence, a stark contrast to the previous wickedness.

Taeyong fishes out a lollipop from his pocket, quickly sucking on it with a happy sigh. “Don’t blame them, though. But don’t fuck with me; the people know me for bigger things than the candy rumor. You think you’re so funny.”

Before the younger can respond, the event organizer that definitely knows them past their innocent masks comes over with a grin. “Ethan, Jaehyun. Thank you for coming. As you are aware, you are the biggest contributors to this batch. Orphanage visitations, renovations and local projects became possible due to your help. Especially you, Ethan. You’ve been donating since you resided in Bordeaux. We really can’t thank you enough for your kind hearts.”

The sound of candy cracking can be heard through the background music. Taeyong munches on the sweet lollipop and stands next to Victor Martin, the current mayor – the officiant of their civil wedding. “This pretense, I dig it.”

Sensing the mockery, the mayor waves it off with an unchanging smile. “There must always be a safe introduction when we’re in public.” His tone then lowers. “Because if they listen and pick up a boring subject, they will leave us alone. So, anything you need the local authorities to know?”

“Fantastic. I’m not sure if you wanna keep things a secret or expose our asses by talking it out in public.” Taeyong chews on the lollipop stick and looks at his husband, though the conversation is still between him and Victor Martin. “Just the usual. If you continue the usual level of security then the usual cash will flow in. Might even double. It’s not an issue.”

“Noted. Are you enjoying your time so far?”

“I enjoy knowing I can tear skins open in this place and none outside will be the wiser because you will protect my name. Right, mayor?”

Martin simply smiles, patting Taeyong’s back which he regrets right away as the other reaches for the dagger tucked safely in his pants. Alarmed, the mayor takes a step back.

“Always a patron of violence.”

“You’ve seen nothing of it yet. I can show you, if you want.”

Jaehyun takes that chance to chime in to prevent chaos, stepping in between to shake the mayor’s hand in gratitude. “Thank you, sir. The next donation shall be up in a couple of months just in time for a transaction with an international client. You should hear from us then.”

“…Of course, Jaehyun. I’ll leave you two now.”

Jaehyun maintains the friendly smile until the mayor is gone before tugging Taeyong to the side where a vacant table is. “You like testing the waters so much. If you mess up…?”

“Then I leave the mess alone. I always appreciate the sight of blood in my hands. If no one’s trying to kill me for vengeance then I’d be sad. Let’s go.” The knife thrower throws the chewed stick, ignoring the disgusted groan of a lady that bears the brunt of it.

“Is it alright to just leave? The night is still young, Taeyong.”

“And you will stay young as well if you don’t follow me.”

They’re already on the way out, taking the grand staircase covered with a maroon carpet. How typical. “Have you forgotten Léonie isn’t available? She’s stuck in her place coughing her lungs out. Yeah, right. Your pseudo kids are alone in the goddamn penthouse. Who knows? The boy appears to be addicted to climbing cabinets. If anyone breaks a limb, it’s on you.”

Jaehyun, now a little anxious, taps his foot rhythmically on the concrete while waiting for the valet to deliver their car. “Just say you are worried about them. I won’t judge you.”

“You have nothing to judge.” Voice icy, the caramel-head regards him with indifference. “It took me some time to admit I was invested in you. What makes you think I’d care for those gremlins after a week? Social psychology, frequency and proximity? False. Case by case basis. Their appearance ain’t magic.”

“Taeyong,” the younger starts with an exhausted tone. They’ve been arguing over the same topic for the whole week since they took the twins home. It can’t be helped, Jaehyun supposes. It was utterly an impulsive, one-sided decision. He should’ve weighed this better. But if he didn’t speak his thoughts, he’d lose the innocent pair. On top of that, adopting them on a whim is hypocritical and foolish, given that they are the cause of the twins’ being orphaned.

“Taeyong, they’re staying with us. And for a long time. You know I’m working on the papers and it’s a little hard to erase their parents’ identities just like that.”

The car finally pulls over and Taeyong grunts as he pushes past the valet to get in the driver’s seat with Jaehyun immediately buckling up next to him. “They won’t let you keep them once they discover who killed their father. Can you not forget that, you fuckin’ amnesiac bastard? I swear to the gods, I can feel it in my bones those gremlins are gonna be the death of me. Already the bane of my existence. See me in a barren wasteland next time.”

“Don’t be sarcastic _and_ dramatic with me.” Annoyed, the younger chooses to look out the window, hoping that the shifting scenery alleviates his sour mood. “Not wearing your ring is enough. Give me a break.”

“Asshole, you believed that?” Taeyong takes his blazer from Jaehyun and then the silver band from its pocket, sliding it around his ring finger.

The sight of it pacifies Jaehyun to an extent. Somehow cooled down, he looks at the other with a petulant frown. They are indeed a silly pair.

“Come on! You just have to pretend to be a doting parent. You can do it. You’re a natural actor–don’t glare at me! Look at the road! I know your strength as a loony, okay. As your husband I recommend you to make use of it. Not the smartest but it’s useful, I guess. Be someone they can look up to.”

He can convince Taeyong without the last sentence, but he has to mess up again in panic. Jaehyun starts praying for his dear life.

“…You gotta be fucking kidding me.” The car stops at a red light, giving Taeyong the opportunity to terrify Jaehyun with his blank stare. “I’d rather die than be a model parent. A role model? Fuck me. Unless you want them to be ruthless.”

The red light lasts for almost two minutes. Jaehyun has his hands comically clasped together in a guise to protect himself, eyes wide, lips bitten. If the situation was different, they’d both laugh it off. No, he wouldn’t even act this way. So embarrassing.

“…”

“…”

“…”

“…If that’s what you want then we’re talking. Shut up if you see me hurling knives at the apples on their head. That’s how they’re going to learn and adapt. They can’t have a normal life. You can act angelic all you want, but that’s only a temporary cover. We’re not ordinary. They can never be ordinary. You stole that away from them the moment you thought it was alright for a murderer to take them home. And guess what, when they finally know the truth, whatever you did for them will be for naught. They will only fault you.”

If he didn’t know better, Jaehyun would think Taeyong’s actually concerned for the children. It almost sounds like he cares, that he doesn’t want the children to be hurt by the inevitable truth because once it happens, once they turn their backs on the pseudo parents, it’ll only bring the half of them grief and the other half contempt – as much as Taeyong’s broken head will allow. Three out of four in their small fake family will be miserable. Taeyong will be out of place.

But he knows better.

“It can’t only be me. _You_ killed their father.”

“As I should!” The caramel-head slams on the wheel, honking at nothing. The traffic is smooth. “He was there to kill or be killed. Just his luck I joined and he got what he went there for. The fight club was built for me. See, Jaehyun? When you dream, make sure it suits you. I like that about you, though.” Taeyong throws him a fleeting glance. “You know I’d do anything for you, right?”

Jaehyun relaxes but his heart does not. It trembles for all the wrong reasons. “Then why can’t you give me this? The illusion of having a perfect family…”

“Because I once tried to fool myself the same way but where are they now? Dead. Dying. People come and go. What do you expect from children that aren’t yours?”

“…You believe that she’s still alive.”

Taeyong slows down once they enter the residential area. He is quiet when he speaks again. “You told me I’ve gone completely mad.”

“What if you’re right? We… you never saw the body.”

Silence fills the car until they’ve parked, and even until the elevator stops at the top floor. Only when they enter the penthouse does Taeyong say something that breaks Jaehyun’s resolve.

“What if I’m wrong? Never trust a lunatic.”

He wants to oppose, but he knows it’s true. One should not put their trust on Lee Taeyong. Even the man himself can lie so much that he himself might even believe it.

Jaehyun takes his blazer off and heads to the kitchen for a glass of water. At the party, he didn’t notice how much he craved it, but all of a sudden, he feels parched and a little suffocated. Ironic, since the penthouse is too big for four people, yet somehow his lungs struggle.

“They must be sleeping now.”

“What the fuck ever, Jaehyun.” Taeyong chucks his shoes off carelessly across the carpeted floor of the living room and proceeds to dump his body on the couch; an arm rests over his eyes. Since he owns the place, he never bothers to keep things in order. “Check on the gremlins and sleep. I’m fucking tired. That mayor better be sure about the checkpoint next time. Who allowed him to set up the gala on a workday?”

“It’s not like you did a lot at the HQ today. Moreover, the extra stress could’ve been avoided if you didn’t say yes to the invitation.” Jaehyun says, impassive.

“I like to show off.”

He finishes another glass of water before making his way to the room where the gremlins are, casting a curt glance at Taeyong’s figure. “What did you say about stereotypical intentions?” If he’s given a response, he doesn’t catch it. The only sign of being acknowledged is a groan, before he closes the door behind him.

A small lamp illuminates the corner of what used to be a guest room. Jaehyun spots a covered lump on the left side of the bed before raising a brow at Haechan. “Hey, I thought you were sleeping.” He says in almost a whisper so the female twin won’t wake up.

“I waited for Haera to sleep,” the boy replies, continuing it with a soft gasp as Jaehyun gestures for him to quiet down. Eyes a little wide, he nods. “Then I forgot to feel sleepy.”

“You forgot to feel sleepy?” Jaehyun asks, tone lilted with amusement.

It must have offended the boy for he frowns, lower lip jutted out. “It’s not easy to be a big brother.”

For a second, the itch to tease the child crosses his mind, but it’s going to risk waking Haera. Big brother…his frame is small for his age.

“Ahuh,” the adult in the room sits on the floor, one arm propped on the edge of the bed. “I wouldn’t know. My mother only gave birth to one baby.”

“Really?” Haechan looks sad. “So you didn’t have any playmates? I only have Haera because we weren’t allowed to go outside.”

“I had playmates. But I didn’t really have to watch them sleep.”

This friend of his papa likes to tease him a lot. Haechan ignores it. “So no sleepovers? I wish I got to do that but I would need more friends. And papa is hard to talk to. What about the scary man?”

Now, Jaehyun knows the kid is talking about Taeyong. He snorts and playfully pushes the boy’s forehead with a finger. “You can say his name and he won’t hear you. Taeyong is tired and he must be sleeping now – without showering first. Which is not something you should follow. What about him, though?”

“He’s scary!” The way the boy tries to keep his voice down while he looks panicked is funny. “Are you sure he won’t get mad if we act familiar with him? Um, he just makes us feel like we should put our guard up all the time…”

“He won’t mind you calling him by his name like you do with me. But he doesn’t open up right away and he does and says mean things. He may or may not purposely do something you dislike to catch you off-guard. So if you feel offended or disrespected, then I’m sorry in his stead. One thing though, unless he apologizes to you, do not forgive him. He’s an adult and he’s aware of everything. Besides, he’s…he doesn’t need anyone’s forgiveness.”

“What a difficult person…”

The boy purses his lips and glances at his sleeping sister before clutching the sheets. “Jaehyun, can I ask you a question that isn’t this question?”

“Sure, cheeky kid.”

“How did you know our papa? And what’s he doing? When are we going home? I’m not demanding to go home, okay? But…I want to make sure if papa’s coming to get us? The past week here was fun; please don’t get me wrong…”

The influx of questions wears him out even more. Jaehyun doesn’t know if he should continue to fool these kids who are undeserving of deception. What else can he do, if not to lie? Deep inside, he knows their set-up is a mistake.

 _For a little while, lie just for a little while._ His mind tells him.

“Your dad works for us, remember? I told you that. He…he deals with customers. You know those people who sit behind a desk answering queries? That’s what he does. Lately, work became busy. So many people come to ask things. It occupies him. Your papa needs to stay there even at night because there’s just so much work.”

 _That’s it,_ the demon cackles by his ear. _Feed them so much lies until they do not know the concept of truth._

Haechan digests the information but fails to understand and it shows on the crumpling of his face. “Really? When he used to not come home, he was working? Jaehyun, you have to know…papa doesn’t buy a lot of food. You are paying him, right?”

“Of course we pay everyone equally. What do you mean?”

Instead of explaining, Haechan looks at his sister once again, clutching the sheets tighter. “Are you sure we can stay until he picks us up?”

“More than sure.” Jaehyun nods, voice firm. Because he knows these kids are not leaving anytime soon. “Are you alright?” He asks as he notices the boy clenching and unclenching his fist.

“Yeah,” Haechan answers too quickly as if he expected the question. “Well, you must be tired. Did you have fun at the party?”

The kingpin shrugs as he stands up, pushing at the back of his mind the hunch that the boy might not be saying something he should ( _because you do the same_ ), and glances at his wristwatch. “It wasn’t a fun party. Parties for adults like us are usually boring. Go sleep now. I’m keeping you up late. Tomorrow, some friends from Korea will call. You should meet them.”

Haechan nods and slides under the covers that reach half of his face. “Good night, Jaehyun.”

“Good night.”

As he leaves to get ready to shower, Jaehyun sincerely hopes they won’t ever say their future goodnights with a heavy feeling.

A painful feeling that shoots up his back is what greets him in the morning. His verbal greeting is a string of curses as he rolls on his stomach, mood already rotten beyond saving. Taeyong twists and turns hoping to get more sleep but the sunray hitting his face proves to be too difficult to block.

“Fucking hell,” he murmurs before sitting up. His head feels like a parade of ten-wheelers are running over it. “I fucking swear I was fine, Jesus.” With another series of profanities, he tears himself from the couch, realizing he’s still wearing the previous day’s clothes and quickly gets in the shower, still murmuring threats directed to no one.

When he finishes, hair still dripping wet, Taeyong pads to the kitchen with mind still half asleep. A cold shower does nothing to his body. He can literally hear his brain whir in the fashion machines do.

Hand hanging midair, Taeyong pans in to the pink note attached to the fridge. Without reading it he notices he hasn’t heard a single sound yet telling the others are awake. It’s 9 in the morning. Could it be that they’re all still drooling on their pillows? Not impossible. Jaehyun still finds it hard to wake in the morning unless he’s planning to hit the gym.

The pink note is obviously from his husband. Whatever’s written debunks his previous guess. In fact, the trio is now having fun without him at the pool.

“Little shits,” he says and grabs the slice of cake he saved for himself before going down in his loose black shirt and shorts, barefoot.

The pool at the ground floor, at the back of the residential building is semi Olympic-sized. Rows of trees surround the area to offer anyone lounging there a cool shade. At this time of the day, only two other residents are present – a couple soaked at the other end of the pool.

Jaehyun is sitting on the edge, feet dipped in the water. Near him is a pair of flailing children, dressed in simple shirts and shorts as they did not even think of getting them proper swimming clothes. It looks like the kids know how to swim.

“How’s life without me, oafs?” Actually apathetic, he sits next to Jaehyun and begins devouring his cake. “Didn’t know people still leave notes on the fridge. Pathetic.”

“But it worked. If it didn’t work you wouldn’t be here with your sugary meal.”

Taeyong continues to munch on the chocolatey bread, blank eyes trained on the twins. “It’s better to swim at night when it’s colder. The weather will soon get chilly. Try hypothermia; I heard it’s good for the bones.”

“Highpottermia?” Haera tries to repeat the word. She clings to the edge of the pool, legs flapping. “Isn’t that…isn’t that Harry Potter?”

“You sure are dumb, kid.” Taeyong splashes water at the girl’s face after she stuck her tongue out at him. “Who’s that?” He then directs his attention to the laptop perched on a stool at the other side of Jaehyun.

“The squad.” Jaehyun pulls the stool closer and adjusts the laptop so the camera gets the twins. “They’ve been asking to meet the kids since last week, right?”

“Is that Taeyong?” Someone from the other line asks. It’s Ten. They are huddled close.

Yuta rolls his eyes and switches his expression like a bulb to wave at the kids. “You heard a fully grown adult voice call an innocent kid dumb. Who else could it be?”

“Was making sure. ‘Cause if someone else dares to call this princess anything remotely close to an ugly word, they can eat this fist.” The short man warns, showing his closed hand. “Ouch–Yuta you’re sitting on my arm!”

Winwin whispers. “That doesn’t look so threatening.”

“Dong Sicheng, did you say something?”

“Nope! Johnny, let’s switch places. There is an ominous air right this way…”

Johnny wordlessly switches with Winwin, and Ten immediately clings. “Right, there really is an ominous feeling.”

He realizes it’s not the right thing to say after getting whacked in the head. “Hey! You’re a nurse, you’re supposed to take care of people, not hurt them.”

“You deserve it.” Both Yuta and Ten say.

The tallest among the four shrugs and grins at the twins who are surprisingly paying attention to them. “Don’t mind us, alright? This is just how big people talk. And no, you don’t have to have this kind of friendship when you grow up. It’s not mandatory. We’re not the role models you deserve.”

“What are you even talking about,” Yuta interjects, leaning close to the laptop as his face almost covers the whole screen. “It’s better to nurture kids at this age, Jaehyun. Be honest. Tell ‘em exactly what they signed up for when you brought them under your wing, my big bird friend. So, who likes guns?”

Taeyong cackles, the kind that grates annoyingly in the ears. “Big bird friend. Motherfucker, is that literally or figuratively? Because I’m telling you, this guy ain’t that impre–”

Whatever he wants to say is blocked by Jaehyun’s hand. Taeyong licks the younger’s palm who shrieks at the mistreatment, effectively letting the older talk again. “And what nurturing are you spouting? None of you has the say. You’re a notorious womanizer, Nakamoto. Do you really want these gremlins to acquire STD as adults? What an outrageous goal.”

“Womanizer? Take note, I hit on both men and women now!” The Japanese man grits his teeth, comically glaring at the camera. “Is that okay to say around the kids?”

Jaehyun sighs and scratches his cheek. “You already said it. Even shamelessly ignored the worst part of what he said. And that did not actually prove the accusation wrong. You are still a womanizer. Men just added themselves into the equation.”

Slammed, Yuta finally keeps quiet and sits properly, shoved by Ten who looks mildly irritated by the momentary commotion.

Winwin looks a little uncomfortable in his spot even with the mobile game taking his attention from the conversation.

“Where were we?”

“I asked who likes guns!”

“Yuta!” Johnny reprimands him although there’s not a trace of seriousness in his face. The first kingpin of Invictus is _this_ close to admitting his regrets with calling the squad.

Looking wronged, Yuta glares once again. “What? Pretty sure they had toy guns or watched an action movie once in their young lives.”

At last, one of the twins comes up with a question. “I don’t know if I like guns because they kill people with fast bullets, so…are we supposed to like it?”

Jaehyun gazes pointedly at the Japanese sharpshooter. “I’m gonna have to talk to you after this.” 

“Yeah, sure. Anyway, kid. Haechan, right? You are probably watching the wrong characters if you see guns in a bad light. Police use guns to disarm miscreants. Bad cops go straight for the heart if it’s unwarranted. If the criminal is relentless, if it’s authorized, the gun kills. Sure, you might have heard about gun violence, but that’s the user, not the weapon. If you don’t wanna use it to harm, it can be a hobby. When you’re old enough you can visit a shooting range. That’s considered a sport, too. I started from that, actually.”

For a minute, the boy considers what Yuta said. Given that the sharpshooter dropped a lecture not fit for seven-year-olds, Haechan seems to get it pretty well. “So what do you do now, if it’s not a hobby anymore?”

“I ki–”

“Where’s Doyoung?” Jaehyun cuts through, finally noticing the squad is incomplete. “Is he not in the HQ?”

Johnny answers. “Buried in work?”

“And he doesn’t have the time to meet the twins?”

“It’s not exactly lighter here just because you transferred headquarters and carry a different load, Jae. Technically, we also lead here. So if Doyoung chooses to be with his computer, that’s fine. Just send him pictures. That guy’s cause of death will be _workaholic_.”

Ten scrunches his nose, side-eyeing Johnny. “That’s not a valid excuse to die. Specifically, it’s negligence. Anybody can be workaholic but not neglect themselves.”

“And you four have all the time in the world…?”

An explosion sound effect comes from the game the arsonist is playing. Winwin aggressively presses on the screen of his phone as he joins the conversation again. “You wanted to see us… Maybe if you weren’t so eager to show us your little humans then we’d be unavailable too.”

There’s a sudden silence from the squad.

“I think Winwin changed a lot.” The first kingpin comments.

“I can communicate better now.”

“And who’s to be thanked?”

Everyone looks at Yuta. Even Taeyong stops licking the icing off his fingers, anticipating drama.

“Well,” Sicheng looks at them then back at his phone. “Certainly not our yet to be settled issue.”

“Tissue?” Haera’s voice rings through the air, the little girl picking her ear and tapping her temple with the heel of her palm. “My ear is clogged.”

“She’s not just dumb. She’s also deaf.” Taeyong mocks once again. “The water will drain by itself.”

“Hey!”

The knife thrower raises both chocolate-stained hands in mock surrender, one thumb stuck in his mouth as he continuously sucks it clean. “Chill. Five against one?”

Jaehyun picks up the remaining cake and shoves it in his husband’s mouth to shut him up.

Haera giggles. “We can do that too?”

“Yes!”

The absolute menace in the group spits the half-masticated cake back to his plate, making the twins cry in disgust. “Just because I had a good sleep and I choose to behave doesn’t mean you can treat me like this, dick-sucking cunts. Mostly you, dimple boy. Can’t let you taint my natural charm with your squad’s aversion towards me. Oh,” he theatrically collapses, a hand on his forehead enacting exaggerating mistresses, “you wound me, bastard.”

Yuta hogs the camera again to talk to their squad leader. “If you wanna preserve their innocence you might as well clog their ears.”

Ten follows. “And eyes.”

“Bullies,” Taeyong remains posed. “I am terrified. Imagine if I was still allergic to sleep. One breath from you midget, I’d have you hanging upside down the next second.”

Johnny holds the nurse down and grabs the laptop while Ten rambles in the background. “Jaehyun, Doyoung is working on their papers. The parents,” he silently mouths the word so the twins won’t hear, “both of them are Korean so it’d be easier to take the legal route if you’re here.”

“Does it mean they’re not locals here?”

“Do they speak French?”

The younger kingpin nudges Taeyong who beckons Haera close.

“Pouvez-vous parler français?” ( _“Can you speak French?”_ )

She just stares dumbly.

“I told you, she’s dumb.”

“Got it,” Johnny clears his throat. “Regardless of the route you take it’ll still be risky. This is not Doyoung’s expertise. There are far too many data to obtain, details to manipulate, people to talk to, news to make up.”

Gloom lightly cloaks the first kingpin. “Let Doyoung do what he can do.”

“Can we continue swimming now?” Haechan asks, already subtly pulling Haera with him.

Ten’s head pops up although only the top half of his face is shown. “Ah go, go! We just took a break too. Our boss is gonna fire us if he finds us lounging. Nice to meet you, sweet buns!”

The rest of the squad in Korea says their farewell and as soon as the call ends, the twins are quick to swim away.

“Sweet buns.” Taeyong repeats, testing the words in his tongue that does not know how to speak kindly without fishing for benefits. It tastes rancid, sounds almost vile.

Jaehyun puts the laptop away as well as the used plate. Not even a crumb is left – his husband must have licked it all away, sparing no sugar. “You can also call them that.”

The older points a finger gun to his temple and clicks his tongue, imitating a shot as though to say he will never do what the younger suggested. “Looks like the gremlins can flap their tiny arms and legs.”

“Might be used to it. What do you think? From Busan?” Jaehyun briefly looks at the twins, wondering where they came from before living in Bordeaux.

“So neither likes guns?” Taeyong now has a chocolate bar in his hand, already halfway done with it.

“It sounded like they don’t.”

“Hey, gremlin boy! Stop diving, there are no treasures there. C’mere.”

Haechan quickly turns around and swims back to the two adults with his twin sibling. Literally two peas in a pod, they cannot be anywhere without the other.

“Mister, I have a name…”

“So do I, but why won’t you call me by my name when you don’t have qualms calling this dickhead here Jaehyun? Eh?” Jaehyun calls out his foul language which falls on deaf ears. “What are your hobbies?”

“Reading…”

“So the children’s book is yours?” He’s met with a shy nod. “What about your twin?”

Haera raises an arm for Jaehyun to pull her out of the pool. She shakes her head like a pup, spraying water. Taeyong makes no move to wipe his face dry. “I like listening to him read!”

With a straight face, the blue-eyed kingpin curses. “For fuck’s sake,” he then bites a chunk of the chocolate. “You two live a dry ass life. I like knives. Knife throwing. Don’t give me that look; it ain’t scary. You just need to know the right technique and execute it well without injuring yourself unless that’s your kink. It’s awesome. For awesome people, I tell you.”

Wrapped in a thick, baby blue towel, she squats next to the caramel-head while eyeing the chocolate bar in his hand. “May I try?”

“Do I have a say in this?” Jaehyun asks even though he knows the answer. Well, just in case. He continues to dry Haechan as much as he can.

“Mm, you do. But I’m not listening. Gremlin girl can try. Also, archery sounds good.”

Haechan raises a hand, wanting to join.

“Excellent. Looks like I got students to teach!”

“Maybe I can teach them better sports.” Jaehyun tells an opinion he will never be asked of.

“What, like swimming? How’s that working out for you? You might wanna take a tip or two from these gremlins instead. You saw them swim in the deep part of the pool, right? Come on, fix yourselves and meet me in the practice room.”

They all get up and begin to head back to the building with Taeyong leading the way and the twins trying to catch up with their short legs. It honestly looks funny from where Jaehyun walks far behind.

“Why did you eat the cake like that? Don’t you use spoons?”

The knife thrower slams a hand to press a button when they reach the elevator. “I’m used to eating with my bare hands. When you get lost in the woods or in an isolated island you wouldn’t need utensils to eat. Basic survival skills include not being finicky with your limited choices.”

She peers up at him for a few seconds, trembling. “This is not a jungle, Taeyong! We have spoons!”

“I make my own choices. Shut up or I’ll hang you upside-down to dry.”

“Here.”

The knives are already laid out on a table when the twins finished drying and dressing themselves. The room they are in is actually two guest rooms modified into one, turned into the second kingpin’s recreational room. On the left side is a door that leads to where the weapons are stored. Bows hang on the wall at the right side while there at the front are the wooden targets, scarred countless times by blades and arrowheads.

Taeyong adjusts the Velcro strap of his gloved hand before picking up one of the daggers, twisting the tip over his protected palm. Its silver handle is carved intricately, creating an eccentric pattern while the blade itself is made in Titanium. “These are customized. Everything here is made to leave lethal injury – but that depends whether or not you’re an expert combatant. Also, these are lightweight covert. The others that are detectable and heavier, designed to kill are kept. You can’t take a kitchen knife and hope to god it pierces through a muscle. But nothing’s impossible if you know how to. I’m only going to show you how things are done so don’t you dare touch these. You have no idea what I do with dripping blood.” He warns before dragging a target to the center and takes his place.

“What do you do,” Haechan wonders, warily eyeing the knives. “You clean it up, right?” The question makes his twin sister voice out her thoughts, vastly different from her brother’s that it horrifies the poor boy for how ludicrous she’s being.

“I think he tastes it!”

“Now I’m not sure if my worry’s valid.”

Taeyong smirks at Jaehyun before cocking his head at Haera. “I like the way you think, gremlin.”

“So it’s true?”

“If I say yes, you’ll have to watch me do it.”

“N-no, thank you!”

Haera deflates in disappointment.

The two men exchange looks, and then Taeyong faces the target as he begins to explain the basics of throwing knives. “I’m gonna show you the circus throw, which is one of two ways to do it. The other is tactical. Keep in mind I’m showing you something that isn’t done in combat. Anyway, there are three kinds of knives. For a beginner, you should use the balanced one.” He looks at the two. “Leftie or rightie?”

“Rightie!”

“Alright, you use your right hand then. When you get used to this, you’ll have your own gripping style. I have established mine, and the way I throw is unlike any other. You might witness it one of these days, who knows?”

Jaehyun rests against the wall, right ankle over the other. “I wish they never do.”

“Buzzkill. Gremlins, I can’t tell you what you wanna do about your style because it’s really based on your purpose. It’s completely up to you. For now, I’ll show you the hammer grip. There are plastic knives there, you can take one for trial. Here,” he brandishes the dagger in his hold, “is a double-edged blade so you hold it with four fingers on the handle and your thumb on top. There’s another method called pinch grip but that’s for another day. Next, figure out your angle.”

The younger kingpin takes the liberty to help the twins imitate their volunteer coach, eventually getting immersed in the impromptu lesson.

“How you do this is going to affect the speed your dagger hurls. The kind of blade I have needs to turn once in the air, you get me? The ones you have are plastic imitations of mine. Let’s do a close range first. Do what I’m doing or you’ll get hurt.”

Jaehyun looks at his husband’s posture and quickly adjusts the twins’.

“Fold your wrist back towards your arm. When you throw, it’ll turn quick since you’re standing at close range. Watch.”

The trio almost misses it. The speed of Taeyong’s arm is too quick for the clueless students. One second they’re waiting, then the blade is already impaled to the target the next.

Haera is in awe. “Whoa! You hit the target at the center!”

“I think you teleported,” Jaehyun jokes. “I wasn’t prepared.”

“Sounds like a _you_ problem.” Taeyong shrugs and rips the knife out of the wood, cleaning it with a rag. “You’re supposed to hit the center because that’s your target, see the red circle? You should do it. Obviously, you can’t do exactly what I did because one, you two are short as hell and two, you got plastic knives. Show me your stance.”

The two get into position with Jaehyun reminding them what they did earlier. Soon, they toss their plastic knives and even though the ‘weapons’ did not hit anything, let alone reach the opposite wall, they still look like they scored a goal.

Nothing changes in the knife thrower’s expression, no sign of approval nor disapproval, no comment about it.

“You did well.” Jaehyun says as compensation for the lack of commentary from the teacher himself. “I think they can try with archery.”

“Okay.” Taeyong agrees.

“Oh? You actually listened to me?” The harmless sarcasm is clear in the younger’s tone.

Taeyong does not give him the satisfaction with any kind of reaction. Instead, he resumes his position. “They will get hurt if they do it now. You two,” he turns to the twins who pick up their discarded knives, “I’m gonna do a medium range now. Listen closely. This time you bend your forearm back only slightly. See the difference?”

The twins nod, copying.

“Since there is lesser space between me and the target, the knife will hit it quicker than the first.”

This time, the awe from the two seven-year-olds is louder, probably because they already expected the marvelous demonstration.

“Maybe I should time it so they know the difference?” Jaehyun suggests as he pulls out his phone.

In front of him, the siblings huddle closer to their teacher, wanting to watch in a better proximity. Taeyong ignores them, running a hand through his hair to push it back so it doesn’t block his sight.

“The last one is long range. Basically, you don’t bend your arm. Just raise it straight like this. In this method, the knife won’t turn too much which is perfect because of the distance between you and the target.”

When the knife hits the center point of the wood for the third time, going through the same slit the first and second throws made, Haera is already reaching for one of the real knives on the table, only to be pulled back by her brother.

“Let me goooo!”

She continues to shriek in Haechan’s hold, twisting her wrist out of his grasp.

“Great.” Taeyong monotonously says. “Those methods are shit I don’t use. And like I said I may show you that without the dimple boy’s disagreement.”

“Since when do you follow rules? Breaking it is basically your lifestyle.”

“Change of mood.”

“Right.”

“Why can’t I get a real knife, Taeyong? That’s unfair!” She yells. “I wanna be like you!”

“Be careful of what you wish for, gremlin. Speaking too soon will get you to the wrong direction. By the way, make sure the target you’re gonna use is thick enough. Also, your stance. Let me see.”

Haechan manages to pacify his sister with whatever he whispered to her before they’re back to their previous spots. Taeyong crouches to fix their legs.

“Your dominant leg bears your weight while the other is in front. When you bend your arm, make sure the knife is at a safe distance from your head so it doesn’t cut you. Swinging a knife is different from swinging a baseball bat. Your arm should only move up and down, not go across your body.”

The excited girl comes up with a question. “What about when we throw it? Should it be light?”

“You’re asking the right questions.” Packing up the knives, Taeyong decides not to deny her a decent answer. “That’s right. Let it leave your hand. Aside from strength, this is also about finesse. Not just force alone, but consider the fluidity of your movement. Still, if you’re too soft the knife won’t hit anything. It might not even reach the target. Of course, you’re not gonna master it overnight unless you do it every hour of everyday. After that, clean your blades if you don’t want it to rust.”

“Can you please show us everything again? It’s okay if you don’t retell! Just show us!”

The knife thrower wryly scoffs at her. “I’m not getting paid for this.”

Jaehyun calls the twins to squirt some disinfectant in their hands. “You’re a volunteer teacher. Volunteers don’t get paid.”

Standing idly, face blank like a statue’s as he watches Jaehyun, the caramel-head lets the gears in his head slow down before registering what the latter said. “Exactly. Martyrs of the modern world.” Right after his transient glitch, that is still uncertain whether it’s normal or intentional, he somehow procures a candy from one of the drawers and pops it in his mouth.

Disappointed once again, the female gremlin as she is called, resorts to asking for candies and coming up with another question to feed her unending curiosity. “How long did you practice?” Haechan asks Jaehyun for a candy just like hers, smiling cheekily when he gets one.

“I can stick the blade to the board at close range when I was six.”

“I thought you _mastered_ it. Shouldn’t it be more impressive than that?” A lollipop finds its way between Jaehyun’s lips and he finally understands why Taeyong is so addicted to it. The strawberry flavor really is on another level.

“Oh, I mastered it, alright. But I thought you might appreciate a little bit of humility even if it’s _fabricated_.”

Jaehyun shakes his head fondly. “I rest my case.”

“That doesn’t stop there, you know. When I got the better means, I took advantage of it.”

“You mean when you joined RP.”

Taeyong stares at him while twirling the long ends of his hair. “I had everything there. Hey, you two. Eyes on me again.” He proceeds to grab a bow and several arrows off the wall.

While the other is keeping the twins from snatching his bow, Jaehyun falls into a state of reverie. Mind going miles and miles back to the past. It tells him everything he wasn’t explicitly told, shows him scenes he never personally saw. When Taeyong said he had everything in his original org, it could mean two things – he got his first customized knives there, given rigorous combat training by the experts, or he suffered too much in the hands of whoever tortured him to the bones that he learned to embrace the pain and willfully inflict it to anyone within a mile radius.

Jaehyun is watching the knife thrower but he sees him in a version before they even met. Taeyong, with all the ways he tormented his victims, he took it all firsthand. Merely thinking about it makes the younger kingpin’s skin crawl. For someone to survive that…Taeyong’s will to live goes beyond comprehension. Pretty sure he had his own vicious motives that could only be done with oxygen in his lungs. Whatever that was, it kept him alive, strong enough to consume excruciating pain and go on like he was just…supposed to.

Like a lion in his own kingdom.

Like an unfeeling psychopath, equipped with tremendous pain tolerance.

An overjoyed squeal pulls Jaehyun out of his trance.

Running out of patience, Taeyong lets the twins share another bow and an arrow.

“Why is it so heavy?” Haechan asks, clutching the bow with his sister. Considering his short stature and small body, the bow is a struggle to hold for him.

“Because it’s expensive. And you won’t really use it; just letting you cop a feel. Now listen.” Armed with his own bow, Taeyong stands in the middle once more. “Once I’m done and you forget the knife throwing, I will lock you up here.”

“That’s mean…”

“Tell me something I don’t know. Alright, there are three methods.”

Suddenly interested and wanting to forget what just plagued his mind, the sharpshooter grabs a bow for himself and stands on the other side of the twins.

“Those are drawstring, crossbow and gearing up. Basically gearing up is a warm up, a preparation. To know which one is your dominant eye, point your finger at a distant wall or object.” Taeyong demonstrates it. “Close an eye. If your finger appears to move, the closed eye is dominant.”

“Your type of bow should match your dominant eye. Since this is just a brief introduction, don’t give a shit about that yet. Next, use arrows that complement your bow.”

Jaehyun raises a hand asking if his arrows and bow match, to which Taeyong just gives a thumb up.

“You’re holding a drawstring bow right now. Its arrows are made of carbon fiber. I have ones that are made of fiberglass. Not that you’d know, but different arrowheads serve different purposes. For shooting targets,” Taeyong shows his arrow, “it should be field point, while blunt tip is for hunting as well as Judo points.”

“I’m 28 and it’s hard to pick up. Kids, do you get what he’s saying?”

“Just a little!” Haera pinches her fingers together. “I will read about it next time!”

“Jaehyun here prefers money more than anything so he aces business, not sports. Brain too little for archery. Moving on, you need to wear a protective gear. I have two but that’s ten times bigger on you.”

“Are there gears for kids?” Haechan, though quiet around the blue-eyed man, tries to join in the conversation from time to time.

“There should be. If I have time, I’ll get you a finger glove. If you practice and you don’t have it, you might damage a nerve for good.”

Hearing such troublesome circumstance, Jaehyun switches his drawstring bow with a manual crossbow. He then glances surreptitiously at his husband, wondering if the other realized the meaning of his words – a next time means the kids are not going anywhere.

“You guys wanna see me fire a crossbow?”

“Excellent! I need a damn break. I think this is the most I talked since birth.” Taeyong grumbles at the side as he puts his bow back to its place.

Of course, what the older said is an exaggeration. He chattered worse than this.

From thereon, Jaehyun takes the lead. “This one is not that heavy – for me, at least. So first, you see this one at the front? That’s the stirrup. You step on it and pull the string back ‘til it cocks,” he sticks a foot inside and demonstrates the step, “you will hear it. There’s that soft click. It’s easier with a crank crossbow. Do we have that?”

“It’s at the HQ.” Taeyong sits with legs spread on the ground.

“HQ?” Haechan asks, confused. “Why is it there?”

“Headquarters. Stop asking unnecessary questions and just watch dimple boy.”

Jaehyun is quick to tug the little boy close. “Don’t mind him, okay? So now that we got the string cocked, the bolt – here, this long rod, should go into the barrel. There. When you load, start at the top because it’s safe. Then the bow should either sit on the shoulder or press into the pocket of it just like this–” The crossbow rests atop his shoulder as he poses to aim the target. “Like you do with a rifle. You won’t get to hold a rifle, are we clear?” Like he knows the little girl would do something crazy, he rushes to close the storage door before resuming his position.

From where he’s sitting, Taeyong admires the sight before him. The sharpshooter, specifically. It’s really like watching him carry a rifle. He’d like to see Jaehyun in his element again. To see him fire a gun and rain bullets mercilessly is equal to a rush of hot adrenaline in Taeyong’s body.

Suddenly, he’s reminded of the last time they used a gun for…indecent purposes.

“Steady the bow with your other hand for a good shot. When aiming, you look through the scope here. It’s like a peephole but more complicated, but once you read the manual it’ll be easy. Line up your shot and only pull the trigger when you’re ready.”

The bolt rips through the air and accurately hits the target in a blink of an eye. Haechan gapes, stunned, while his female twin doesn’t look as astonished although her eyes are wide.

“It’s like a gun…”

“Like a gun, indeed. You seem to know the basic.”

The boy does not reply so the girl takes the cue to open her mouth, tone snobbish. “I like knives more. You just throw it.”

“You don’t just throw it.” After keeping quiet for a while, Taeyong’s voice sounds like roaring thunder that Haera jerks in surprise. Despite the blank face, Jaehyun sees through the single twitch of a finger.

He puts a hand on Haera’s head, a silent warning which the knife thrower does not acknowledge.

“See, you forgot it already. Stay and sleep here. If I hear even the softest footsteps, you’re dead.” 

“Is that a challenge?” She beams.

Again, the adults share an indistinguishable look that just the two of them understand.

Taeyong’s eyes slide back to hers. “I guess you aren’t that similar after all.”

A low, rumbling noise resounds in the practice room. Jaehyun masks his laughter with a cough. “Looks like the cake isn’t very satisfying as breakfast. I’ll cook – and the recipe, I will read it well, I swear.”

“Not going to the HQ?” Taeyong catches the crossbow that Jaehyun tosses and stuffs it back in the storage area.

“They can handle it. Other stuff can be done here. Why?” Jaehyun pauses at the doorway to give the older a mischievous smile. “You’re gonna miss me?”

Taeyong stops fixing the crossbow, turns his head towards the younger and quickly aims said crossbow acting like he’s going to shoot Jaehyun. But the latter has already ran away and an evil cackling echoes in his wake.

“I wasn’t gonna shoot him. There’s no bolt.”

“Aww,” Haera sighs. “You wouldn’t shoot him just because there isn’t a bolt. But if there is, you will shoot him, right?”

Haechan barks his disapproval of his sister’s words.

Taeyong’s attention lingers on the twins, and an intriguing idea tickles his damaged head.

In the kitchen, kind of disoriented, Jaehyun opens and closes cabinets to get what he needs for whatever he is planning to make before his phone rings in his pocket. Upon checking, he realizes it’s a call he shouldn’t miss.

What is Fort calling him for?

“Hey?”

The informal greeting is somewhat normal now between the business partners. Fort has been very helpful since the start of Invictus’ journey from the bottom to the top. The man is unexpectedly understanding, risking his relationship with a big group to give a chance to an org he didn’t know. While Ethan was locked up in the asylum and Jaehyun was restless for days on end, the leader of Garnet lent a hand to the subgroup of their former associate. The unexplainable severance of Garnet – Red Phoenix did not affect Fort’s treatment towards Invictus.

To say that the two organizations are acquaintances is an understatement. At this point, they could even work as one with the tie that binds them – Taeyong.

_“Jaehyun. I sent an email. Since I’m currently unavailable, I just put everything there. It’s about the goods that need to be sent to Japan. They’re requesting a type.”_

“Sure, I’ll check it. I didn’t go to the HQ since the squad called to see the twins. Figured out I should just work here.” Jaehyun sandwiches the phone between his ear and shoulder to continue what he’s supposed to do. A swift glance to the entryway tells him the three must still be talking in the practice room.

Totally uncharacteristic of Taeyong to mingle with new people, and not to mention – kids.

A voice knocks on Jaehyun’s head. _Who told you they’re mingling? He might already be perforating them with cute, little stab wounds._

He spills too much oil on the pan.

_“Jeong Jaehyun?”_

“Oh– yeah, sorry, I’m a little occupied. What is it?”

Fort hums. Sounds of paper rustling are present. _“The kids. You mentioned them. Are you…sure about that? You can’t fault me for asking private matters. When Ethan’s tongue slipped during the meeting it was undeniably entertaining.”_

“Well, I am sure. But a certain Garnet member is not, predictably.”

_“You should not expect a drastic change. Therapies he attended were useless; he played them all. Be glad the violence dwindled. That’s the best he’s gonna be. The children must be bored out of their wits being locked in a grand penthouse. Say, have you brought them to Disneyland yet?”_

Jaehyun’s brows furrow while he meticulously cuts vegetables. “Uh no, not yet.”

_“Perfect. You should bring them there. What’s that place called again?”_

“Apart from the name? I don’t know…but it’s got a motto saying it’s where dreams come true?”

The Garnet leader’s deep chuckle reverberates through the phone. _“I think that’s the one. They will like it.”_

“Yeah. Actually, they got a spontaneous knife throwing and archery class.”

_“Seriously? How did they react?”_

“…Different.” Jaehyun says, remembering their contrasting reactions.

The older man must be writing as there is a constant scratching of pen against paper, and then the topic switches. _“If you’re both not going out, who’s to check the casino at least?”_

“Taeyong’s men will be there. The guy they have took permanent residence in the Black Room. He wouldn’t be there if Taeyong’s handling him, but the task was given to a member instead. That one is almost as twisted, if not for the decent behavior outside the chamber. So unless that member gets tired, poor hostage isn’t leaving.”

_“Truly unfortunate. There must be a valid reason. Anyway, I’ll expect your thoughts regarding the Japanese’s request.”_

Compared to the familiar greeting, the farewell ends formally. At the end of the day, business is still business.

“Someone called?” Finally, the trio arrives. The twins look like ducklings behind Taeyong, running to the table and scrambling to sit on the chairs.

“Work. Fort is a thoughtful one, huh.” Jaehyun jokes, although the fact that Jung Yunho caring too much about his husband still gets to him.

Taeyong takes the seat across Haera and they continue their childish staring contest with the caramel-head clearly winning. “He’s nosy.”

Soon the food is served, its delicious smell permeating the air and further exciting hungry stomachs.

Jaehyun hands everyone their utensils which Taeyong uses to scare the kids, acting as though he’s stabbing their little fingers with a stupid sound effect he produces. _Chak chak chak_ repeatedly comes out of his mouth as he chases the twins’ hands with a fork, enjoying their cries of horror while the only sensible adult with them attempts to play the role of a mediator. 

“Taeyong no!”

“Taeyong yes!”

A 15-minute meal turns into an hour.

They leave Charles de Gaulle airport with the car they rented for the whole stay in Paris. The whole trip from CDG to Disneyland Hotel takes almost an hour via A104. Thankfully, there are no disturbances in the traffic flow.

Upon arrival to the hotel, which is only a five-minute walk away from the amusement park, the twins are already bouncing in their seat. A kind valet takes their car and Jaehyun politely rejects the offer of a staff to carry their luggage for them. The hotel is always booked, so they ended up paying for two superior rooms, instead of only one and another fit for children. It’s more expensive, but the other hotels are 8-10 minutes away. Moreover, Disneyland Hotel has a complete magical fantasy experience, its building’s color scheme a sweet mixture of white, light brown and soft pink, and its ambiance full of child-like vibrancy. Despite its obvious catering to a child’s wonder, it still has the perfect amenities deserving of its impressive review rating.

Their rooms are in the second floor, next to each other. Before entering theirs, Jaehyun carefully reminds the kids not to lose their keycard and if they encounter any kind of trouble, they are only a door away.

When he hears their squeal, he leaves to meet Taeyong in their room and what welcomes him is a glorious sight of modern 1880s Victorian rail road era bedroom style. The room is a warm apricot and white with the former dominating. At the center is the bed, mattress soft and sheets smooth, freshly ironed. Flanking it are two nightstands and a phone complete with a directory sitting on one of them. By the foot of the bed is a plush seat and opposite it is a television cabinet. Adjacent to the cabinet is a couch that faces a small, round table complete with a pair of chairs and a lamp standing close. There are three other lamps, two on the wall by the bed and the last one bolted atop the couch to give light whenever someone fancies lounging there. Pictures frames of drawn animals hang on the wall. The bathroom is spacious enough for the price of the room, still matching the whole Victorian theme.

All of those and they are not even the best part of the room – it is the terrace adorned with potted plants, overlooking the front area of the hotel especially the large fountain area. Since it is still daytime, quite early, the lamps lining up the pathway and staircase leading to the lobby are unlit. Positively, when nighttime comes, there are going to be gorgeous lightings within the vast area while sitting at the terrace.

“How much did you pay for this,” Taeyong asks as he sits on the bed, taking off his coat.

“Around €1300?”

“Everything?”

“I forgot. Does it matter? There’s Wi-Fi if that’s what you’re concerned about.”

Taeyong shrugs and walks toward the terrace, opening the white double doors. He stands there for a minute, seemingly looking over the place before coming back inside to begin checking everything inside the room. “It’s only 9. The park opens at 10. I suppose you have everything planned for the three days we’re gonna be here.” He says while scanning the telephone directory.

Jaehyun stands by the cabinet, currently amazed that the small tv is working with – obviously – a Disney channel and some international channels. “Yeah, of course. You wanna eat first? We can go around the hotel before heading to the park.”

“Whatever is fine. I’m bored.” Taeyong ruffles his hair to a subtle mess and pulls out some clothes from his bag before shamelessly changing right there. The older’s behavior does not faze Jaehyun anymore because even before they got serious, he’s become immune to the knife thrower’s severe lack of shame.

Jaehyun himself takes the chance to get out of his simple shirt and jeans in the massive bathroom. A few minutes later he’s back, donned in a gray turtleneck under a white, open button-down shirt and midnight black blazer with the cuffs folded, and tortilla pants fastened by a black leather belt.

Seconds tick by as the couple stare at each other in complete silence. Taeyong scans him up and down, lips pursed. “Gearing up for 13 degrees Celsius later? It’s a good 18 today.” He teases.

“Well I can easily remove the blazer when it gets warmer than that. Or just suck it up.” Jaehyun says too nonchalantly when his inner self is battling against the urge to pin his husband down. The older has no idea what he’s doing to Jaehyun’s poor, fragile heart.

Who thought it was a good idea to make Lee Taeyong wear a black overall? Sure, it’s his go-to fashion ever since. But the punk combination of lava turtleneck beneath a loose, oversized half-opened coal button-up, tucked in black pants with multiple silver chains hanging on the left side while one end of a single chain is latched from the right side and going across to attach itself on a huge ring from one of the left-side chains, together with a cross pinned to his leather belt and rings on the right hand, completed by the edgy low-cut cowboy boots is trying to come for Jeong Jaehyun’s neck. Weirdly, he has no qualms giving up his life to the strong pull of lust.

But not now. They have an itinerary to follow.

He hopes no one, not even the possible ghost in this room hears him gulping down a lump of thirst.

“Are we matching turtlenecks?”

Taeyong checks himself in the mirror and fluffs his hair once again. “IT couple things only.”

Without further ado, with the tempting force of his inner hoe now shoved down to the deepest recesses of his body, Jaehyun leads the way out and to the twins’ room. He lands a few knocks before the door is opened. The twins are already dressed and currently browsing through a book of fairytales.

“I see you two are ready. Put the book away and let’s walk around after eating, hm? I promise when we’ve familiarized ourselves here, we can head to the park.”

“Okay Jaehyun– oh, the princess is actually an evil witch!”

Internally, the first kingpin wishes to be shot right there and then. The female twin really has an alarming absence of self-preservation. Luckily, Taeyong only rolls a candy in his mouth before whispering an empty threat that she does not take seriously. Haera tugs Haechan with him and soon the quartet enters the Inventions restaurant.

Living up to its name, there are pieces of technological inventions suspended from the ceiling. Stylish seats and tables are close to the long row of breakfast buffet. Picture frames hang on the arched walls supported by bricked pillars. Overall, it gives off a vintage vibe with a slight touch of steampunk.

“Do you want me to bring you food or you choose your own?”

Haechan politely tells Jaehyun that they can fix their own plates. The twins then grab their plates and begin in the wide selection of pastries, taking bread rolls and yoghurts as well as fresh fruits. They go for a second trip to get more of deli meats like sausages and chicken. When they finally return to the table, Taeyong and Jaehyun also have their own breakfast, but the former only has French toast as usual.

Haera says something about being the luckiest before filling her belly with warm goodness.

Breakfast is spent in comfortable silence, apart from the occasional teasing from the second kingpin who, once again, tries to stab their hands with a fork. He only stops when a restaurant staff gives him a dirty look but not before making a show of stabbing his innocent bread.

The kids finish their meal with fruit juices going against the adults’ hot beverages and then they are off to the recreational areas of the hotel. First, they pass by the heated indoor pool. It’s a decent size and there are youngsters already soaking in it. Since their residential building in Bordeaux already has its own pool that they go to daily since they were brought there, Haechan and Haera do not give it a second look.

Contented by just following, the couple engages in a conversation while the twins enjoy inspecting the entertainments.

They pass by the sauna and steam bath as well as the spa, places the kids have no interest in until they arrive at Galerie Mickey. It is a boutique of different character items. Somehow, Jaehyun is roped into buying Mickey and Minnie face towels.

“What are you gonna do with this?” He asks as he hands the cute bag to Haechan.

“Wipe our faces.”

“Smartass.” Taeyong examines some figurines and leaves at once.

They stop by the Mad Hatter’s Game Room. But since it will be surcharge and they went there for the outdoor fun anyway, they decided against trying it and finally make their way to the park.

Groups of people are lined up at the gates. Kids here and there litter the area. Young adults talk loudly over each other with their character headbands and outfit, immersing themselves in the fun, festive atmosphere. There are _so much_ people everywhere, something that switches the irritation button in Taeyong. It’ll be impossible not to be sucked into a crowded space.

With tickets booked prior, they easily get in the park and the second they do, the twins are already screeching in excitement, small bodies barreling into the mascots of Donald Duck and Goofy. They demand to have their photos taken, carried up by the mascots and Jaehyun is nothing but a slave to adorable children so he takes several shots before the mascots put the twins down to entertain others.

Still stuffed from their first meal, they skip the food stalls lined up at the side to go to their first destination in Fantasyland which is called _it’s a small world_ – a 10-minute boat tour that caters to all ages especially preschoolers.

Upon learning that they’re going to be in a place for literal preschoolers, Taeyong makes a weird noise in bewilderment. “So like a school trip? School trips are the worst.”

A parent in front of them looks at him and frowns before going ahead.

“Not like a school trip. It’s a lot better than that.” Jaehyun says, urging the twins to enter.

“It’s totally the same except we’re riding a tiny ass boat. Don’t scold me if I start pushing you guys off one by one.” He doesn’t even bother to lower his voice so the others entering are giving him looks of horror. Some of them ignore him, thinking he’s just kidding while the same parent that frowned at him throws an angry remark, telling him to fuck off in the most censored way possible.

But Ethan only looks ahead in boredom.

They go batch by batch since the small boat can only carry ten people at a time. Ironically, Taeyong is the first to board the next boat, sitting at the far end. No other choice since they don’t want to sit separately, Jaehyun settles down beside his husband while the twins are in front of them.

The sun cannot peek inside to give way for the sparkly, multicolored backdrops well-crafted out of papier-mâché showcasing the different cultures of the world as they go through the seven waterways. While a guide speaks through the ride to explain the history of the attraction, the song _It’s A Small World_ plays in different languages each time they stop by a traditionally dressed doll. The song plays in English, French, and Japanese among other languages. Chatters fill the whole venue; youngsters take numerous photos to keep the memories alive even after leaving Disneyland. Haera dips her hand in the water, giggling while screaming _it’s cold!_ as Haechan attentively listens to the trivia recited by the overeager guide who almost falls off the boat, making Taeyong snicker at the back.

During the ten-minute ride, they are greeted by so many dolls that by the end of it, Haera has a scratchy voice from saying hello to all of them.

It ends too soon, a good first taste of Disneyland that keeps them in high spirits (except for a certain knife thrower).

Seemingly rushing with unlimited energy, the kids follow the flow of people, dragging the adults behind them, to the next attraction which is _Princess Pavilion_ , just by the exit of _it’s a small world._ It’s a meet ‘n greet with the princess of the day, Cinderella.

Predictably, as she has incessantly related one of the kingpins to a princess, Haera is the one clinging tight to Cinderella’s skirt. She blabbers endlessly, telling the princess anything under the sun and even tears up at one point when she tells Cinderella, who does not understand a word she says, that she’s her favorite Disney princess because she likes the color of her gown.

Haera hogs the princess, whining when other kids try to take Cinderella away from her. Annoyed by the constant noise around him that cannot be helped, Taeyong finally rips the kid out of the princess’ hold and puts her down, blocking her with a hand as she tries to run back to the princess.

“Hey, give chance to other kids. You’re not the only one they gotta work with, see? Look around you. Does it look like we’re the only ones here?” Taeyong curtly glances at Cinderella who’s watching the whole scene and does not return the wave she sends when the quarter turns to walk away.

Jaehyun is quiet this time, deciding against calling out his husband for not talking to the kid in a nicer way. Haera seems to be the kind to want things done her way, wants to get what she wants with a cry and a stomp. Although the reason Taeyong pulled her away is not because he cares for the others, because he knows the knife thrower is just sick of her crying, Jaehyun is glad for his help. It would’ve been harder if the task was left to him.

“Where are we going next?” Haechan tugs at Jaehyun’s hand.

“Hm, let me see. There are too many attractions that I don’t know where to go first… What about that?” Jaehyun points at _Mad Hatter’s Tea Cups_. “You wanna ride gigantic spinning cups?” The quick nod and widening of eyes are enough for him to get them there. There’s less traffic in the entrance when they arrive, probably because people don’t want to get dizzy so early in their visit.

Haera is successfully distracted now. Tears dry and cheeks red, she bounces on her heels while waiting to be let in.

“You guys won’t be dizzy?”

The twins shake their head and race towards to purple cup. Each cup is different in color with scribbly lines and shapes.

The kingpins flank the twins in the cup. In front of them is a wheel they can control if they want to fasten the spin or change its direction.

When the merry music begins, all teacups start turning moderately. The same speed continues on for a minute before one of them reckons it’s too slow.

Jaehyun is a second too late to stop a grinning Taeyong from hastily turning the wheel, sending them in a mad whirl.

Haera’s screaming stands out, almost louder than the music. Taeyong is laughing maddeningly from his spot while twisting the wheel, switching from left to right and making them incredible dizzy.

Thankfully, it doesn’t last long. Three of them are wobbling out of the place and struggling to stand straight while one is casually walking with hands in his pockets, whistling even.

“Holy funk,” Jaehyun groans, holding his head. “I think I’m gonna be sick.”

“That’s your problem,” is the sarcastic response he gets. “Not my fault you’re too much of a pussy. Could’ve closed your eyes, right? Am I right?”

Taeyong looks down when something bumps his leg. Haera is in a daze.

Feeling quite sick, Jaehyun leads them to the surprisingly vacant bench nearby. There they spend the next hour just sitting, praying that their stomachs won’t betray them right now. A vendor walks by and they snack on a box of popcorn for the meantime while waiting to feel better to head to the next attraction.

Sure enough, when the twins are hyper again, they find themselves at the backstage of a show where they can meet Mickey Mouse. An unbelievably long line greets them. Knowing one of the kids might throw a tantrum again, they remained where they are to wait for their turn to have a photo opportunity with the arguably most popular character.

…And when it happens, not even Taeyong is spared from the tightest hug ever, given by a giant mouse. He forces himself to smile for a free picture as a souvenir, only rolling his eyes when the three others gang up on him giggling and making fun of his expression.

“You look constipated,” Haechan dares to say. His sister backs him up with another teasing while Jaehyun’s lips pinch close, not wanting to risk it.

“I don’t look constipated,” Taeyong monotonously argues. “Do you look like you’re gonna kill when you’re constipated?”

“I’ve never been constipated!” Haera yells.

“Good for you. It sucks when you got a stubborn shit. Shit got one job and that’s to slide out of your ass and it won’t even perform properly. That’s why it’s not getting paid a dime!”

“Ignore his rambling; he doesn’t make sense and he knows it. Come on. Do you guys wanna go around Fantasyland for today and then check the other places tomorrow?”

“Mm, okay…”

“Fine. Where to next…” Utilizing the map given earlier at the entrance (he just remembered he has it since he stuffed it in his pocket the moment it was given – and it was a stupid move; believe him, he knows it), Jaehyun suggests they try _Dumbo the Flying Elephant._

Three minutes is the duration of each ride. Since only kids are getting in, Taeyong manages to make Jaehyun stay with him outside. The twins don’t look like they’re going to need anybody’s assistance anyway. From the outside, as they watch elephant gondolas go up and down, the first kingpin slumps against a metal barrier.

“This place is for people with unlimited energy. D’you think I get tired fast because I haven’t hit the gym in two weeks?”

“Don’t know don’t care. But if you wanna bring that gym addiction here there’s one back in the hotel.”

“There is?”

“Huh. You missed it. For someone like you, shouldn’t it be the first thing you’re gonna look for wherever you go?”

Jaehyun playfully pushes the other. “I’m not like that.”

“Yeah,” Taeyong fixes his belt. “Good luck trying to find anyone you can fool.”

“What,” the sharpshooter grins, eyes glinting. “I can’t fool you? Never?”

The older shakes his head. “How do I look like?” He faces Jaehyun.

Jaehyun drinks in the image of his husband and tilts his head. “Gorgeous.”

“Wrong. Told you, you can’t fool me.” Blue eyes stare back, holding so much mirth in them.

“Why? How do _you_ look like?”

Taeyong steps away from the metal barrier. “Devastatingly gorgeous. Ravishing. Brilliant, never been done before–”

Jaehyun licks his lips and leans close, lips brushing the second kingpin’s ear. “You’ve been done before. Countless times.”

Taeyong pushes him away with a chuckle. “Fuck off. You’ve been done before by me.”

That’s when the kids choose to return, thankfully not getting to hear the adults’ choice of conversation topic and its implications.

As their time together has been taken away again, they get back to their itinerary for the day. Taking a break from the rides they visit different souvenir shops – sometimes purchasing, sometimes just window shopping.

The twins are overjoyed by the things Jaehyun bought for them. In the background of their happy group, a lone caramel-head watches the siblings and wonders why he wasn’t given the chance to have this with his sister – this innocent fun. They could’ve had it all those years ago before they were taken to Korea. Before they were struck by reality. They could’ve had a day or two of dreams in Disneyland before they were given nightmares.

A hand clenches in his pocket. The sight of these gremlins makes him _sick._

Lunch happens a little late in an Alpine village-themed restaurant called _Au Chalet de la Marionette_. The restaurant is entirely made of wood. Menu is cheap, much like a fast-food, something the kids will enjoy more than fine dining. The only issue is…

…Jaehyun can’t speak French.

“It’s hard to read! Go order!” Jaehyun scurries to a table and plants his ass down the chair then proceeds to remove his blazer, leaving Taeyong staring dumbfounded at his antics.

With a scoff of disbelief, the older proceeds to the counter and orders. “Two half roasted chicken with the fries side and yogurt, two Authentic Bratwurst with the ice cream. Those got drinks already, yeah? And two bottled water. Not cold.”

There’s a two-minute wait before the food is ready and Jaehyun helps in bringing the trays to their table, looking a little embarrassed.

“What, you realized you’re an idiot?” Taeyong settles down with a foot propped on the chair, unmindful of anyone judging. “Newsflash, everyone here is bilingual at least. They can perfectly converse in English.” He points at the counter with his thumb as he takes a big bite of the sausage. “Menu is written in French _and_ English.”

“Then why did you not speak in French?”

“To show you you’re an idiot.” Taeyong’s eyes then shift to the kids. “What are you lookin’ at? Eat.”

“Why do you eat like that,” Haera grimaces. “It’s so noisy.”

Instead of stopping, Taeyong even chews louder, further disgusting the people at their table.

“You chew like a goat!”

“Do I look like I give a flying fuck? Comment another time and I’ll choke you.”

Before the girl can cry about the unnecessary threat, Jaehyun pushes fries in her mouth to shut her up. It’s deemed effective.

“You ask him that each time you eat with him. By now, you should understand you will not get a proper answer and he will not stop chewing like a goat. Eat your chicken before it gets cold.”

When the younger kingpin glances at the man at his side, he’s shocked to see Taeyong already devouring the ice cream, the corner of his mouth stained with chocolate. The state Taeyong is in should turn Jaehyun off a little but it’s doing nothing. Curse the whole outfit.

To redirect his libido’s attention, he just tugs the band off his wrist and gathers the long, caramel tresses, tying it so it won’t touch the food.

A gibberish ‘thank you’, distorted by the cold dessert is what he hears before he finally starts eating.

After the late lunch, they resume their activities. For the next two hours, they have gone through most of the attractions and shops in Fantasyland. So far, the twins enjoyed La Carrousel de Lancelot the most where they got to wear armors while riding the horses like royal knights.

Their last destination in Fantasyland is _La Galerie de la Belle au Bois Dormant._ Inside Sleeping Beauty’s castle, there are books that tell her magical and romantic journey to find that one true love that would wake her from the cursed slumber. The interior of the castle is extraordinarily creative as pillars that look like trees supported the ceiling from the ground. Stained glass windows give the story a visual representation as well as the tapestries that are found next to the books perched on lecterns.

Wanting to change sceneries, Jaehyun leads the kids to Discoveryland, Taeyong still silently tailing with an icy blank face. They decide to watch _Mickey’s PhilharMagic,_ a theater that shows a series of character adventures in a spectacular 4D experience. The whole audience (except for certain few) sings along to classic songs such as _A Whole New World_ and _I Just Can’t Wait to Be King_ from the famous movies Aladdin and Lion King.

Jaehyun momentarily forgets his profession, his identity as a whole during the showing. The feeling of being _normal_ left him so long ago that when it waved to him today, he didn’t know how to welcome it back. It only hits him overwhelmingly, now that he’s clapping as the show ends, and he looks at the siblings sitting next to him, both wearing their animal headbands.

 _This is what it feels like to be ordinary_ , he muses. _But at the same time, this is what it feels like to be unsuspicious – pitifully unaware of the dangers I am used to, dangers I cannot ignore._

Oh how it feels to be ordinary, to live a simple, normal life – he craves it all of a sudden and the exhaustion of wanting more material things seeps into his bones. He has looked in one direction all these times and never bothered to consider the other ways. But why should he feel regret now, when this – living with one foot in the grave in exchange of money and power is what he wanted, what he knew he was born to live?

_Don’t you dare look around and take it all in. You are a criminal, a rich, intelligent criminal. One day, you will aid in making somebody in this place miserable. Do not wish for a normal life now, hypocrite. It’s either you be the monster these oblivious commoners are afraid of, or be the oblivious commoner that the monster takes advantage of._

_You may be getting a taste of normalcy now that you have innocent children with you, but remember...you already ruined them._

_Monster._

_You will never replace their father._

Suffocated by his own thoughts he gestures for the three to finally exit the theater. From his periphery, Taeyong glacially stares at him as if knowing what’s going on in his mind. Jaehyun flips the map open in a desperate attempt to distract himself.

“Aren’t you all tired? ‘Cause I am already sick of being around humans, thank you for asking Ethan Lee.” Taeyong phrases sardonically with a pat on his own shoulder. “If you’re not planning to go back to the hotel yet then I’m leaving.”

“Wait! You have nothing to do back in the hotel, though.” Jaehyun says.

“I can actually call for a room service, eat all the sweetest desserts and stare at the wall until I burn a hole on it. A big, big hole. So _au revoir, salauds_.”

With no more than a stern look at the twins, Taeyong walks away.

Haechan grips his paper bags of souvenirs. “We’ll stay here, right? It’s not yet five in the afternoon? What time is it, Jaehyun?”

“Uh, a little past 3.”

“Then let’s go around some more! There… there!”

Jaehyun nods and lets the twins tug him to the next play place, and if he only tries to call his husband again then he’ll know that the knife thrower does not go back to the hotel.

 _Pirates of the Caribbean_ is one of Disneyland Paris’s most famous attractions, found in Adventureland. A huge white sail with the name of the attraction welcomes the guests and is the beginning of a slightly spooky escapade from thereon. T

The whole place screams 17th century.

First, they are led to the Dead Man’s Cove. Inside, the rooms are covered in cobwebs. Haechan’s knuckles are white from gripping Jaehyun’s sleeve tightly while Haera walks ahead, awed although still scared by the skeletons and statues put in different places posed for a skit. Occasionally the guide encourages them to take photos with the dolls, and at the third reminder Haera crouches next to an old, dusty treasure chest for a photo.

Upon coming to the seaport past outside the cove, Jaehyun keeps the twins’ close when rowdy rogues brandish whatever’s in their hands. He swallows a chuckle when Haechan almost trips over his own foot when boarding the boat set to sail to the Hurricane Lagoon.

True to its name, the lagoon really gives them a splash to remember.

“Jesus,” he mutters under his breath as he ruffles his now slightly damp hair. “You guys have those Mickey towels, right? Wipe your arms and faces…”

Their pirate journey does not stop there. Flames envelope a side of the ‘town’ and looters and buccaneers sing merrily as the guests attempt to make their way out. Some of them successfully go, while others…not so much.

Among those that the looters locked up in the dungeon is a confused as hell Jaehyun. The last thing he saw before he gets dragged to a fake prison is the siblings cackling mischievously at his misfortune. At least, he knows they’re alright.

A voice echoes to instruct the ‘prisoners’ what to do. On the other side of the door is a small dog holding the key. So to free yourself, one must be able to lure the dog in giving it up.

“Easy-peasy.” Jaehyun grins before slotting his hand through the door and gesturing for the dog to come over. For a minute or two he does the same thing, even complaining to the animal as though it understands him.

“Hey pup, come on, my kids are waiting for me. I’ll look pathetic if I don’t get out of here soon. Tsk.”

And as if he was actually heard, the dog finally approaches to drop the spit-covered key. Jaehyun playfully pets the dog on its head, even scratching its chin before he follows the other unlucky guests to the exit.

Bright light hits his face the second he’s outside. Haera’s giggling once again – she probably has not stopped since, and Haechan looks relieved while carrying all their souvenir bags.

Jaehyun has not even fixed his hair yet when he’s brought to the next attraction, the _Adventure Isle._ Mentally groaning, he forces his legs to follow and his heart to obey the wishes of the two energetic youngsters. Who is he to deny them anyway? They’re literally in the happiest place on Earth!

Adventure Isle is another family-fit activity. Each group is given a map to help them find their way out. At each stop is an easy riddle they need to solve. Skull Rock welcomes them with an eerie gloom, a long pathway leading to the breathtaking Spyglass Hill.

Together, the three of them go from stop to stop to read the instructions and answer a question. A guide cheers them on so as not to lose their spirit as soon as they enter a cave with fake bats hanging upside down on the roof. It’s a little dark inside saved by the few lanterns also serving as their clue where to head next.

A suspension bridge awaits them outside of the cave of Skull Rock. Guests will have to cross it in order to arrive at Spyglass Hill. There’s no other way so Jaehyun ushers the twins who held each other’s hand while trying to ease their nervousness. The bridge shakes a little, inflicting fear. Trembling a little, Haechan races to the end of the bridge with his sister and yells for Jaehyun to walk faster.

Rewarding is a feeling they bask in the moment Spyglass Hill is unraveled to them. It’s a wide land of green grasses and tall trees, little streams and cool, gentle breeze. Five minutes are given to them so they can take a lot of photos before it is time to go as the new batch of guests is to enter Adventure Isle.

“Hold up,” Jaehyun beckons the two before collapsing on a bench and finally seizes the opportunity to fix himself, pulling his blazer close when the chilly wind brushes past their direction. “The last time I’ve had this kind of fun was…I can’t even remember. I was a kid like you. I probably had the same energy then but now…let’s take a short breather, okay?”

Good thing, the two do not protest. They snack on some cheese nachos while lazily talking, watching people mill about and do what they’re supposed to do in Disneyland. The crowd doesn’t look like it’s going to be sparse anytime soon.

Half an hour passes before the sharpshooter decides they can go to one last attraction to conclude their first day.

Main Street, U.S.A is actually the first ‘themed land’ in the park, which the twins ignored in favor of heading to the Fantasyland. The attractions in Main Street, U.S.A are less compared to the other themed lands as it is designed to be a town square.

Meet ‘n Greet with Pluto is unavoidable as the mascot opens its arms for a hug to receive the jubilant pair. The siblings take turns having their photos taken before they finally enter the _Liberty Arcade,_ the attraction dedicated to the Statue of Liberty.

Liberty Arcade boasts an American atmosphere with its New York-style setting. The long, wide hallway is illuminated by gas lanterns above green lampposts. At both sides are red-painted windows displaying historical artworks, photographs and cases discussing the story of Lady Liberty, an immortal tale that binds France and the United States of America together.

After looking at each display, the trio leaves in a calmer vibe, opting to drop by the _Boardwalk Candy Palace_ to grab a little gift for Taeyong.

Stepping into the candy shop feels like floating in a puffy cloud and entering the gates of heaven. The place, well-lit by ornate chandeliers is literally overflowing in candies, chocolates and more. For someone who has a sweet tooth, Boardwalk Candy Palace is the perfect store to splurge your pocket money on.

Lollipops and candy canes sit in clear jars on boards above tables displaying different other treats like gummies. More of them are in found in every corner of the shop as well as the counter.

Haera points a big container of lollipops to the kingpin. “Jaehyun, I want that…”

“Are you sure? You might hurt your teeth.”

“That’s not for me!” She says, fiddling with the buttons of her little pastel coat. “Taeyong got mad at me…”

Even though she did not finish her sentence, Jaehyun understands what she wishes to convey. She wants to apologize by giving the knife thrower his treasured treats. Jaehyun smiles and takes the container, paying for everything that the kids got.

Too focused on watching the cashier bag their purchases, he fails to hear the soft chiming of the door as another customer gets in.

Warm breath hits Jaehyun’s ear.

“That lollipop jar better be mine.”

The first one to react is Haera, of course. She’s a loud kid. Her huge eyes peer up the man, jaw slack after an overdramatic gasp. Beside her, Haechan manages to school his expression before glancing at Jaehyun...whose face is not any better.

Although his face is calm, his eyes are wider than normal while redness coats his earlobe and the sides of his neck. If this was a cartoon, steam would probably come off of the sharpshooter in waves.

Because why the fuck not would he go beet red at the sight of Taeyong’s newly dyed hair?

It’s completely black now from the root to the tip. Framing both sides of his face are some shorter strands, reaching his cheeks. They disappear when his fingers comb through the dark tresses.

A snap of fingers forces Jaehyun out of trance.

“Is that mine?” Taeyong asks and takes the bag without getting an answer. All four of them hold a staring contest at the counter, and the cashier herself kindly reminds them to give way to other customers.

Now that he collected himself, Jaehyun gathers a handful of Taeyong’s hair which still strongly smells of dye and conditioner, and inspects it closely. “…I thought you went back?”

“Was going to. But I saw _Dapper Dan’s_ – it’s next to Liberty Arcade.”

“We came from there!” Haera exclaims.

Taeyong flat out ignores her. “Thought I would try a different look. From your faces I knew it was smart of me to dye it.”

Jaehyun smiles slightly and lets the other’s hair go. “You said black was boring.”

“When did I say that?”

“Oh,” the younger chuckles, leading them out of the candy shop. “You got amnesia now?”

Taeyong all but tears the container’s lid open, one hand quickly rummaging for a grape-flavored lollipop. “Of course not, asshole. But hear me out – I am anything but boring.”

The younger kingpin shrugs as a silent admission that yes, he is highly affected by the change of style and it does things to his libido once again. God dammit.

He’s in the middle of trying to calm down when a hand grabs him by the elbow and drags him back, all the way to Dapper Dan’s Hair Cuts. Taeyong practically barges in to make an exaggerated entrance and literally dumps his husband on the nearest vacant chair. The twins are dumbly standing behind.

“He needs a makeover.”

“I don’t–”

“Yes,” the word rolls off slow and hard, “you do.” Taeyong signals the stylist something that Jaehyun misses and tells the kids to sit down in the waiting area.

A smug smile appears on the second kingpin’s face. The surprise Jaehyun will have….

Not long after, said man comes back with an undercut, gelled hair and a single slit on his left brow.

“See?” Taeyong gets up to dust his shoulder off of stray hairs. “Suits you.” He takes Jaehyun’s blazer from the other’s hold and faces the twins. “Say you agree with me.”

Haechan voices his agreement while the female twin is left gawking.

“Well,” Jaehyun starts and touches the shaved side of his hair. “This makes me look younger, so it’s cool.”

Taeyong pays for the haircut before they head back to the hotel for real. He walks a little far behind to let the three in their own world, as he knows Jaehyun is very much into playing the pseudo father of the twins, and just stares at the back of his husband’s head while coming up with a well-formulated plan on how to keep the younger up all night.

He’s not indifferent to the feeling of lust. This morning, it has been coming off of him too strong, permeating the atmosphere that Taeyong had to clench his fist to prevent it from coiling around the sharpshooter’s neck – because it was Jeong Jaehyun’s goddamn fault. It was too powerful, almost hurting his insides. The black of his pants helped to conceal the growing hardness between his legs – though it was unnecessary as Jaehyun was also too blinded by his attraction for him to see what was wrong.

Exhaustion finally settles in the twins’ little bodies so Jaehyun calls for room service instead of heading to California Grill for dinner. He orders the youngsters to take a shower first and waits for their food to come. When the two are settled, only then does he go back to their own room.

“Are you hungry? We can go down. Stop eating candies, seriously. It’s a mystery how your teeth are still intact.”

“If it’s a mystery then why don’t you play detective and solve it?” Taeyong retorts but puts the container away. “For all we know, I could be in the worst state of diabetes now and I’m just perfectly hiding it.”

“You can’t hide something like that. Wounds don’t heal easily if you have it.”

“Oh yeah?” Taeyong irrationally challenges, grabs a razor from the bathroom and points it over his wrist. “Then we’ll see.”

“Motherfucker put that down!” Jaehyun screams as he snatches the razor out of Taeyong’s hold. His face contorts into a deep frown, coal eyes glaring daggers at the incredibly absurd man before him. “You’re not funny!”

“Yo, the precious gentleman just cussed the life out of me.” Laughter bubbles out of the knife thrower’s mouth, head thrown back as dark humor tickles him.

A sigh escapes Jaehyun. He waits until the older stops his madness before pulling out a change of clothes. “Come have dinner with me. Then we can go around some more if you want.”

“Fuck no. I’m done babysitting those gremlins of yours.” Taeyong lies down the bed, limbs spread out like a starfish, his black hair a start contrast over the white pillows while blue eyes stare raptly at the ceiling.

“You didn’t even do anything, to be honest.”

“Precisely. Because I ain’t fucking playing parent to someone else’s kid.”

“They’re too tired so I don’t think they’ll want to go out of their room. Maybe I can just have you all for myself?”

The question evokes a reaction from the older. Taeyong side-eyes Jaehyun. “Alright, but my pick.”

Jaehyun raises a brow.

“Eiffel tower.”

“How far is that from here?”

“Probably an hour. Let’s leave the gremlins. They’ll be fine. What kind of evil could happen in Disneyland anyway?” Lying on his side with his head on a hand, Taeyong faces the younger.

“You.”

Something flits across those azure pupils. Fingers slowly drum against a temple.

Jaehyun holds his breath.

Lee Taeyong smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes.

They leave the car at Pullman Tour Eiffel and take the five-minute tread to the tower. Dining at Le Jules Verne requires booking that Taeyong already settled beforehand. Actually, he was not sure whether to go or not. Money isn’t an issue in case they ended up ditching – well, they are already there, at the second floor and seated by the windows where they can watch the showcase of city lights 410 feet aboveground.

“Why did we not do this when I used to fly back and forth here?” Jaehyun asks while scanning the menu; thankfully, it’s also in English. He’s going to be the one to order this time to redeem his lost dignity.

“Because even though you were here, you still worked – but that was cool. I mean, we didn’t have to go somewhere special and the tower is overrated.” Taeyong thoughtfully lowers his voice, something he never did before. As lights from below reflect against the blue circles of his eyes, he points to the ant-like people walking around the park. “How do you expect me to willingly be in such a place?”

Jaehyun calls for a waiter and confidently says their order. When the waiter leaves, he sits more relaxed and honestly quite proud of himself while watching the microscopic people. “You did well the whole day so you gotta give yourself more credit. I think you can be around that big of a crowd, you just prefer not to since you’re used to being alone.”

“Such keen observation,” the older says.

They don’t need to wait for long for their dinner.

Le Jules Verne fits the meticulous lifestyle for the ambiance encloses one in its 19th century throwback, housing renowned chefs and wine connoisseurs. So to say that it’s deserving of its numerous Michelin stars is an understatement.

A good Sommelier selects the perfect wine for the couple. Combined with a classic French wine, the restaurant has the right to charge more if not double.

Deep red swirls in Jaehyun’s glass. Looking at it on eye level, he doesn’t get a glimpse of the man concealed by the drink. The sharpshooter takes a sip, probably his tenth – it’s _that_ good, and looks outside.

“Adrenaline junkies would dare hang off from this height.” He casts a teasing look at his companion. “Don’t try it.”

“Not into it. What the hell do I get out of it?”

“Me panicking, fuming, losing my marbles?”

“Convincing, but nah. You try it.” Taeyong suggests in all seriousness before cutting off Jaehyun when the latter’s about to open his mouth. “But do you feel it? When you look down there, you feel like jumping?”

The question does not catch the younger off-guard. Rather, it intrigues him enough to fully engage in the topic by trying to picture it out.

“Sometimes I get that feeling, or _thought_ , a voice that says ‘go jump!’. But as far as I know everybody feels the same way when they look for too long and get carried away. Because even though you won’t do it, you wonder what happens when you’re shot to a free fall. How terrified and hopeless will you be? Will those feelings cause you to desperately do something? If yes, what? Perhaps, while waiting for your body to crash the surface, you’re still going to hold on to that impossible hope that you might survive – even if you know you won’t.”

Taeyong listens without a hint of mockery written on his face. He keeps his eyes on Jaehyun’s, occasionally lowering to the younger’s lips as if following the movements before meeting the pair of black eyes again.

“It depends. When you are to die painfully slow, you drive down the memory lane. Whether you like it or not your head flashes scenes. It’s entirely up to you what you do with those memories. Meeting your death head on, fast and instant does not give you much freedom with your thoughts. I guess it would be empty.”

“You sound so sure,” says Jaehyun before finishing his wine.

“I am sure. Been there done that. I just didn’t die, wasn’t allowed to die. But countless times I’d been on the edge of it. Would you understand me, Jaehyun?” The knife thrower still asks in spite of knowing the answer. “To drown someone to the brink of death only to pull ‘em up so they could fill their lungs with air – pump those bags full enough until the next drowning. So when it happens again, and again, you’re gonna get used to it. And you will never be able to differentiate life from death again.”

He does not and will never understand it. In all nearly three decades of existence, not once was he ever tortured to learn. Harsh is his father, but not brutal. The old man would even get mad if he so much as scraped his knee.

So he gets slightly off track, not wanting to tell the other he cannot feel for him.

“I’m not that scared of heights. My legs would only feel tingly if I imagine myself falling from a sky-scraping precipice.”

“That’s fear. Not that I would know. Once I felt it but it was too quick, like a flitting surge of electricity enough to sting my eyes – and then it was gone.”

Softly, mellow, classical music fills the restaurant without them taking notice as they put their attention solely to each other like there’s no one else around.

“Jaehyun.”

The sharpshooter’s name is whispered by the knife thrower.

“If I jump, would you save me?”

Is it a trick question? Who knows? Up until now it’s a little tough to puzzle out the impulsive changes of Lee Taeyong’s mindset.

Yet Jaehyun comes up with a crystal-clear conclusion.

“No.”

Their eyes meet in an instant.

“You wouldn’t want to be saved. I’d just jump with you. But not today.”

Taeyong chuckles. “What, ‘cause you got kids waiting?”

“…I know I can’t change your mind about them but it’s not just me now. Not just you. Not just us.”

“Understood.”

“You do?”

His question is left to deaf ears. Taeyong pays up in cash, does not even wait for a receipt before he and Jaehyun are out of Le Jules Verne and soon walking around the park aimlessly, still close to the tower.

Autumn in Paris has just begun.

The weather will be fluctuating from chilly to warm to chilly again, and rainy days are normal. As luck would have it, the day has been dry and pleasantly cool. The latter could be an indication of fast approaching rainfall. It’s tricky and honestly unpredictable that not even France itself is sure of the weather’s inconsistence.

Cold breeze hits them on the face, the only unprotected part of their bodies. It’s not freezing but it pricks, nonetheless. In hindsight, Jaehyun knows he should’ve brought an umbrella.

Five minutes or so pass. Taeyong, with his unchanging eerily blank gaze and guarded posture repel anyone close by, creating a space around them that nobody dares to step in. Jaehyun racks his brain for something to say just to have something to talk about.

_Ah, right._

“I like your hair. I like mine too; the undercut feels weird but I’ll get used to it.”

“Is hair kink a thing? It should be. You have it. Wanking to your own makeover? I won’t put it past you.” Taeyong fishes something out of his pocket – a hairband, and expertly ties his long black hair in a ponytail. “Admit it. You married me for my hair and not my beautiful soul, didn’t you? I can just cut it, give it to you and we can divorce. Say what?”

Alright. Maybe giving a compliment is a mistake.

“Stop talking garbage. You won’t let me go.”

Finally, the eerie gaze is replaced by amusement. “Get off your high horse, dimple boy. I’d rather you ride me than your own ego.”

A woman, smoking a cig walks by. Taeyong visibly inhales the toxic and slowly exhales, licking his lips. It’s obvious how much he misses the nicotine.

Jaehyun is not distracted. Totally not. “But it’s the truth!”

“Did I say it wasn’t?” Taeyong looks behind before motioning Jaehyun to come close. “Catch me if you can.”

“Huh?”

The older walks backwards, hands on the back of his head. “Catch me.”

“And what am I getting if I caught you?”

“A candy from yours truly.”

The sharpshooter promptly turns around to walk away. Taeyong’s next words alter his mind completely.

“Up to you where I put it for your mouth to take.”

Jaehyun chases him.

And while all of it is happening, one of them watches the tragic beauty unfolding right before his eyes. The tragic beauty composed of black, blue, and all the sins wrapped in one.

Lee Taeyong is beautiful, flawed but beautiful, has always been – but tonight, under the moonlight and against the blinding gold from the Eiffel tower, he is timeless. Timelessly entrancing.

Jaehyun watches him run, lets him go farther and farther away, out of his reach and just takes it all in.

He’s been through so much because of the other, and certainly it will happen again.

But who the fuck cares?

Each day spent with the one of a kind piece of danger is rewarding.

_Run again, pick up your pace, Jaehyun._

_Catch him._

_Don’t let him go._

_Because once he slips out of your arms…_

_…you’re not going to have this ever again._

Bewildered by the sudden, ambiguous turn in his thoughts, Jaehyun pauses. Taeyong is still running, not even looking back.

Anxiety gnaws in his chest, eating his heart away. Why did he stop? Why is Lee Taeyong not stopping? Is he not aware nobody’s following?

Nobody’s around?

Something’s wrong.

Why can’t he feel his hands?

Numbness slowly engulfs him from the head. Jaehyun jerks and attempts to run, to get to Taeyong before he completely loses his senses but he cannot move his legs. Stoned to the same spot, Jaehyun opens his mouth, hoping for the other to hear him at least.

No sound comes out.

His throat is raw, like it has been crying out for hours, days nonstop.

As panic settles in, his sight zeroes in on the knife thrower’s figure that shrinks and shrinks by the second.

Jaehyun tries again just as the whole surrounding dims for the foreboding storm. Forcing a scream, blood spills from his orifice and like a machine he shuts down, hitting the concrete hard. Oxygen leaves his lungs and blood stops pumping from his heart.

Sight blurring as death approaches to pick him up, Jaehyun only looks forward.

There, from where he stops running – in a growing puddle mixed with blood seeping out of two little gray bodies that are too unidentifiable now due to countless facial lacerations, Taeyong merely watches the sharpshooter lose hold of the last string of life.

Morning greets him rudely with the loud ringing of his phone. Still sleep-addled, Jaehyun grabs the phone from the nightstand and turns it off. It’s probably one of the donors he gave his contacts to because he strictly reminded everyone from Invictus to update important people about his unavailability – he is not to be disturbed for three days. Why the hell are they calling at such time?

One eye cracks open to check the wall clock. 6:52. Jaehyun groans.

A naked leg shoots out from beneath the covers and drapes across his hip.

Taeyong slurs, saying something about being woken up untimely and wishing morning does not exist before finally coming to his senses, staring right at the younger. A smile breaks out of his face.

“How shocking, you’re up earlier than me.”

“I wake earlier than you most of the time for the past month or so.”

A hand slaps Jaehyun’s mouth shut.

“Shut uuup. Didn’t ask you to talk.” Stretching, the older sits up and lets the covers slide down to expose his bare figure. All those tattoos look less intimidating when Jaehyun’s mind is begging for him to go back to sleep.

Coldness slips next to him for an embrace when Taeyong leaves the bed in his naked glory, heading straight to the bathroom. Jaehyun is then left to ruminate on the meaning of his dream. No, scratch it. Nightmare.

Oftentimes, dreams, even the bad ones do not really mean anything significant. Dreams are the nonsensical stories that one’s head assembles, trying to put on a good show even during sleep.

But for some reason, this one feels like a premonition.

A thought makes Jaehyun shoot up, stumbling out of bed to slip inside the bathroom. He pulls the shower curtain open, eyes wide in alarm. “Did we really have a date last night?”

Taeyong slams a hand on the wall to turn the shower off, damp hair sticking to his face as he turns towards Jaehyun. “How do you think my ass got wrecked last night because you told me to put the goddamn lollipop in my fuckin’ ass, reasoning that it’s hitting two birds with one stone?” He lifts two fingers. “One, you got your candy and two, you got to rim me.”

“Oooh,” the sharpshooter nods slowly as memories crash back to him.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?”

The shower runs once again and Taeyong swipes his hair out of his face. “That must be the delayed after effect of hitting your head.”

“When did I–” he stops midway when he realizes what it is about, frowning. “I hate Paris so much.”

He moves to leave but Taeyong is quick, pulling him under the shower and covering his mouth with another, swallowing any kind of protest. Not that Jaehyun would dare say no to morning, shower sex.

Second day’s itinerary consists of a tour to _Les Villages Nature Paris_ and heading to Walt Disney Studios Park. From the hotel, they drive to their first destination of the day.

Les Villages Nature Paris is like a rural area which bloomed within urban perimeters but still hidden away from the busy city center. Within the village are five major attractions. A guide will be leading the guests to each attraction to introduce each spot and after that they are free to roam around on their own until it’s time to go. If a guest wishes to leave early, they can freely do so.

A hundred people are currently scheduled for the day, remarkably less than the crowd in the main Disneyland parks. Taeyong wraps the electronic bracelet around his wrist and pockets the free map passed to him by Haechan.

Sharing a summarized history of each place within the village only takes a short time. As soon as the guide gives the signal, everyone disperses around the vast area to enjoy the tour comfortably.

Majority of the tourists go to The Aqualagoon, a large covered waterpark including an outside lagoon. Since they didn’t expect a water activity, no clothes were packed for the kids if they want to have fun with the giant waves.

“It’s fine,” Haera says while perusing the map, her brows furrowed in concentration. “This one looks fun, Jaehyun!” She points to the image of a cartoon farmhouse. Jaehyun gives her an okay.

BelleVie Farm lets tourists immerse themselves in the farming life. A vegetable garden with different leafy greens and other veggies and one or two fruits is taken care of daily so that the tourists can pick the freshest goods to take home. With one basket each, the twins hurry to the row of tomatoes and carrots, randomly picking whichever looks the best.

Taeyong picks a tomato and wipes it clean on his coat before chomping down the seedy fruit. With sticky orangey juice down his chin, he carelessly chews without asking if it’s allowed to eat it there.

Jaehyun just lets him be and starts picking some carrots. They cannot take as much as they want so they end up filling Haechan’s small basket with three while Haera puts some cauliflowers in hers.

“Can we do some actual gardening here?” Taeyong asks, wiping his chin dry with the sleeve of his black coat. “I saw a trowel lying around earlier…ah, there.” Immediately, he grabs the tool and begins digging the rich soil. He doesn’t really have anything to plant there so he tears a plant in front of him before replanting it in the soil he dug.

As funny as it looks, Jaehyun wants to make sure if it really is allowed. A gardener comes over, shockingly watching whatever Taeyong is doing. “Sir, pardon me but you can’t do that…”

“I’m sorry,” Jaehyun says in English. Hopefully the gardener seems to understand. “We heard the guide say gardening is one of the things we can do here.”

“Yes, but you’re only allowed to rake the soil, not dig it and replant.”

Taeyong looks through the dark strands that stubbornly hinder his sight. “I can put it back if you want.”

The gardener looks a little bit baffled. “I will be the one to do it, sir. If you really want to participate in gardening, there are rakes in the barn.”

Delightedly, Taeyong heads to the nearby barn. Two pairs of cattle and horse are inside as well as a mountain of hay. Ignoring the animals, he grabs the prepared tools for tourists. Hands gloved and feet in boots, he pushes the wheelbarrow outside and shovels some soil to the wheelbarrow. After it’s half filled, he heads to the part of the garden where they can dump new soil to rake.

The twins get their vegetables packed before going to the knife thrower. Focused on the task at hand, Taeyong does not mind the kids being chatty next to him. Jaehyun grabs a rake for himself and helps the other.

“Gardening is better than swimming or going through those annoying ropes and treehouses. They can do all that at home but it’s not everyday you do some peaceful gardening.”

Jaehyun chuckles at the other’s petulant tone. “Ahuh, but them going for the cliché activities let us hog the BelleVie. There are only three other people picking vegetables here.”

“They better,” Taeyong continues to rake, irritably pushing his hair out of the way. “Or this rake will be plucking something else.”

Haechan makes a baffled noise. “What is?”

“Just eat your carrot, gremlin.”

Raking the soil keeps Taeyong and Jaehyun busy for an hour. Because they did a good job, the same gardener from earlier allows them to plant seeds and water it after. The gremlins long disappeared halfway through the husbands’ newfound hobby.

When they’re done, they clean themselves and look for the wandering twins.

“Where could they be playing,” Jaehyun sighs as he looks around.

Taeyong keeps quiet and walks straight ahead to the Forest of Legends, an outdoor play area with an obstacle course. Upon arriving, he sees a bunch of kids with their parents cheering at the same. Apparently, a game of two teams has been happening.

Disinterested, he’s about to walk away when he hears a familiar screech. He enters the play area and sees Haera slumped against one of the big tires. She must have tripped trying to outrace the other team, in which Haechan is a part of.

Determined to win, she picks herself up to continue the game, passing the current obstacle with a grin.

Only for her foot to get stuck in the tire. the accident causing her to tip forward and push a boy in front of her sending them both flopping hard down the ground with the boy bearing the brunt of it as he accidentally hits his head.

Parents panic. They flock around the two and help them up. One of the adults worriedly checks over the boy’s condition to see if there’s a serious injury, shaking their head.

And because Haera doesn’t have a parent with her, no one bothers to care for her the same way that boy’s parent does.

“You’re such a clumsy kid,” the unknown man stands up and pulls the boy, probably his son behind him in a protective stance before glaring down at Haera. “If you’re that stupid, you shouldn’t have joined a game for smart kids. It would’ve been fine if only you were hurt, but you dared drag my son.”

Haera only stares without understanding the language, though it seems she gets the gist of it as she anxiously fidgets, lips trembling as a telltale sign of an incoming sob.

The man verbally assaulting the poor child does not look like he’s close to leaving her alone but whatever more he’s planning to say stays unsaid because in a blink he’s shoved against the tree trunk, the back of his head hitting it with a thump. A bark from the tree cracks from the force of the shove, speaking volumes of how hard the man’s back collided against the tree but Taeyong does not give a fuck as he pushes the stranger even harder, one hand on the man’s chest while the other clamps around the man’s throat.

Blazing fire crackles in a pair of azure eyes. The man chokes, grasping Taeyong’s arms and trying to desperately pry out of the punishing hold.

The other adults have dispersed, trying to call security. Some stayed to try pacify the situation.

“Aren’t you a fucking animal.” The knife thrower growls, tightening his hold. “You dare pick on a kid, motherfucker? Do you think calling her names would make you feel better? _Ça fait plaisir, bâtard?_ ” (“ _Does it feel good, bastard?”_ )

The man’s face sweats and begins to change color from the lack of air. Seeing that the guy has no plans fighting back, Taeyong lets go, stepping back as the man falls down holding his throat, gasping for oxygen.

Jaehyun follows where the talked about altercation is and gathers the twins, apologizing to the other guests the second he realizes the reason of it. He crouches, gently brushing away the stray tears on Haera’s cheeks. “Are you okay?”

She sniffles but nods anyway, taking her cauliflower basket from her sibling.

Behind, the knife thrower tugs the man up and dusts off his shoulder. “ _Si je te revois, tu le regretteras._ ” (“ _If I see you again, you’ll regret it.”_ )

A security guard arrives to check on the situation. For some reason when Taeyong faces the newcomer, any intention to interrogate him leaves the guard. The stranger only takes his son’s hand and bolts out of the site, arousing questions from the witnesses.

Surely, he won’t leave just like that right?

Taeyong tells the three that they’re leaving now. Not wanting to get into another accident, the twins obediently follow with their fingers intertwined. Jaehyun buckles them in the backseat before settling in front with Taeyong who waits for nothing and drives back to the hotel at once.

Nevermind the repercussions of the ruckus. What gets to Jaehyun is the fact that Taeyong stood up for Haera when he showed nothing but disregard to her presence, even going as far as purposely exasperating her.

He squirms in his seat and steals a glance at the second kingpin. Maybe, just maybe…there’s a chance for this pseudo family to be real.

What happened is soon forgotten with the help of lunch bursting with Asian flavors at Lucky Fortune Cookery, one of the many restaurants offering menu originating from the Pacific Rim. The twins enjoy a bowl of chicken and rice combo with broccoli and a tall glass of low-fat milk while Taeyong and Jaehyun Korean-style Garlic-Serrano chicken wings, Beef Bulgogi Wrap and Pork Ramen.

Don’t even ask why they’re both starving. There was not enough time in the morning for a proper breakfast for a reason neither of the two wants to talk about at the moment.

Stomachs filled, they continue the second day’s adventure in Frontierland with _Big Thunder Mountain_.

It’s not supposed to look eerie but the way Haechan is whimpering behind his legs, face pressed against Jaehyun’s hip, he’s starting to feel a little wary about the whole thing. He checks the map again and it says family-friendly, so there shouldn’t be a reason for him to back out, right?

False. You know what assumptions do; they hit you in the face with facts. It makes its presence known from the get go, when they go two by twos in the mine carts at the opening of the cave. Since Jaehyun and Haechan are in the first mine cart, they are the first to get the scare of their lives when the rickety box holding their weight starts wheeling through the dark cave on a rusty track. Behind them is the other half of their group, a seemingly excited Taeyong based on the sparkly glint of his eyes and an equally thrilled little girl sitting on the left of the knife thrower.

“Are we sure about this,” asks Jaehyun through the lack of light, bypassing fake displays of old mining tools of the 1850s setting. No matter how much he chants in his head that this is all part of a ride within the ‘happiest place on Earth’ and that he should feel nothing but joy in the company of distant howling and sounds of flying bats, the chill can’t help but slither in his wild imagination.

Almost, he can hear Taeyong snickering at his pathetic state.

And is that Haera chortling with the second kingpin?

Huh…so this is how the two bond. By making fun of Jaehyun being easily scared by ghosts and urban legend monsters.

A minute passes and the mine carts pick up speed, their rickety noises louder within the still dark cave.

Jaehyun has not even prepared himself, has not even taken a deep breath yet when the cart surges without warning, sending them through heart-stopping tilted turns. A piercing scream comes from Haechan who grips the front of the mine cart tight in terror, feeling like he’s going to fly out of his seat even though he’s strapped to safety. They all are.

“Christ this is even better than a rollercoaster!” Taeyong exclaims just as the sound of a bomb detonating startles them, shaking the carts. Little sparks of fire blow on both sides of the track as special effects, adding to the nerve-racking experience.

In another scenario, if this was them firing bullets and dodging grenades, Jaehyun would not scowl at Taeyong’s predictable remark – but today, as though his life is on the line, dramatically speaking, the younger kingpin doesn’t even have half the mind to talk back.

Because as soon as Taeyong finishes his random spouting, two seconds later, the dark tunnel reaches its end – letting Jaehyun taste a tang of hope that literally disappears when the track shoots down and they all plummet in a soul-shattering speed. The carts surge beneath arcs and waterfalls, and the rumbling of falling mineshaft tails them even as the carts have long rolled away from the ghostly mining area.

As a last kick of Big Thunder Mountain, the carts go through a big dip that almost touches the waters under them, a big manmade river. Whoever accidentally falls is nothing but the unluckiest.

Good thing, Jaehyun successfully evaded that, only with his image basically stripped off of him in the form of Taeyong and Haera doubling over in laughter while stepping out of their cart, the knife thrower even tripping from how boisterous he’s guffawing.

With a straight, unamused face, Jaehyun stands like an idiot at the side waiting for the two to stop laughing at his misery. Haechan mimics the embarrassment with a crestfallen expression.

“Done laughing your ass off for the day?”

Taeyong wipes a tear at the corner of his eye and schools his expression back to its eternal icy state, only for him to lose it again once his eyes land on Jaehyun’s indignant ones.

“It’s so funny,” sarcastically, the sharpshooter laughs and calls the little girl over, turning around as he childishly wallows in his own humiliation.

Internally, he blames himself. Why is he such a scaredy cat at 28? He’s literally a mobster, one of the hundreds of leaders in the underground business scene and a regular in the black market. Multiple guns aided him on the frontlines of brutal wars and here he is, embarrassed to the bones because he almost pissed his pants during a Disneyland ride.

Great.

“Don’t be such a downer, dimple boy. Not even male gremlin thought it was _that_ terrifying.”

A hand suddenly delves in Jaehyun’s back pocket for the park map, making him swat at the ballsy person’s face.

“Mad fuck,” Taeyong curses while cupping his cheek. “What are you, a sensitive princess?” He harshly opens the map and frowns at the list of destinations in Frontierland to skim through the yet to be visited attractions, completely dismissing Jaehyun’s attempts to explain to him the importance of consent.

Having finally decided on the next place, Taeyong folds the map and taps its end on Jaehyun’s mouth, effectively shutting it. “You can’t preach consent when you sell those _goods_ to predators.”

“We’re talking about me, though.”

Taeyong flips a finger, says something about playing blind for convenience before tapping the map on Haera’s shoulder this time as a wordless gesture for the girl to follow him to the tamer twin of Big Thunder Mountain, the _Phantom Manor._

Lee Taeyong is unstoppable today. The lack of sympathy for the faint hearted is blatantly obvious.

“I didn’t know Halloween changed its date.” Taeyong smiles, inauthentic as they walk inside the mansion that strongly resembles one of the popular haunted houses in horror movies. What is it again? Amityville? “You should feel special, Jaehyun. An international holiday cemented itself in this park in the form of this out of place haunted manor just for you. I aspire to be this special. What if we ask them to like, dedicate this attraction to the bravest Korean man? What’s his name again?” He continues to mock while trying to chew out a hangnail. “Correct, he does not exist.”

Annoyance stirs in the younger’s system. “Don’t make me tell you about your shortcomings.”

“My shortcomings don’t define me and if you think it’s going to hurt me, you know better than that. Come on, let me laugh at you for being scared of the dark and ghosts in general. I wonder where it rooted from.”

“Dreams, I guess. I wasn’t this much of a jumpy wuss, okay? When I noticed the way I shudder at the thought of being chased by a ghoul in complete darkness, it was too late to rewind to the most probably reason why I am not easy to pick on when it comes to supernatural entities.”

Phantom Manor is a typical horror house with a story to trigger your heart rate. Repetitively, a distorted, ghoulish voice plays from the hidden speakers inside the mansion which shares the unfortunate ends of four men trying to court the eligible daughter of the household. Implications are about the father having a hand in the unexplainable disappearances of the hopeful grooms.

The ‘ghosts’ coming out of their hiding spots elicit satisfying reactions from kids and tense grown-ups except for Lee Taeyong, as usual. Jaehyun makes the mistake of bumping against his husband when a skeleton with bits of hanging flesh dangles from an open ceiling. Even without looking, he’s made aware of the other snickering as wide shoulders shake faintly. Knowing that convincing the other to stop treating him as a laughing stock won’t work, Jaehyun sucks it up and blocks his periphery using both hands until they’re out of the manor.

Quickly, he puts his hands down just as Taeyong turns to look at him expectantly. “What!”

Taeyong raises both hands in defense. “Calm down, big guy. I was gonna say let’s grab snacks while walking around. You didn’t need to shout,” he chuckles and eyes an ice cream shop. “You treat me so poorly…”

Fighting the older ain’t worth it as Jaehyun will undoubtedly lose so he just agrees with getting some ice cream at Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor in Main Street U.S.A. The twins get Ice Cream Float, he orders the Firehouse Dalmatian Mint Sundae while Taeyong gets both Chocolate Chip Cookie Sundae and Strawberry Street Car Sundae, of course. It would’ve been weird if the avid sugar fan didn’t buy his two most favorite flavors.

While eating, they head to Walt Disney Studios Park which is a minute away via Espl. François Truffaut. It is the second theme park in Disneyland Paris. The second theme park is relatively smaller but it doesn’t mean the amount of people is less – in fact, it’s more crowded, considering how everyone has narrower choices of attractions to visit.

With the free WDSP map distributed at the entrance, Taeyong browses through the list of destinations that pique his interest. At the end, he motions everyone to follow him to _RC Racer_ , a giant toy car that hurtles up and down a 25-meter high half-pipe coaster resembling the way a pendulum swings left and right.

Jaehyun hears nothing from Taeyong when they sit down and buckle up. They occupy the whole row of four seats so it will be easier to watch the kids, in case one of them gets dizzy during the two-minute thrill.

Compared to the abomination that is Big Thunder Mountain, RC Racer oddly invigorates Jaehyun. On top of that, it’s an outdoor thing. So there’s no need to worry about an onslaught of flying bats and exploding dynamites.

Then the ride is sadly over before they know it. Pumped up energy fizzes palpably around the kids, insisting that they all go check out a new attraction close to RC Racer. The closest one is _Toy Soldiers Parachute Drop_.

Back in the combat training days, all members involved in fighting and field transactions needed to overcome their fear of heights through several practices involving jumping off, hoisted in tight straps that will keep them from hitting the ground. Hence, this WDSP ride will be a piece of cake for the two kingpins.

Haechan squints up, little hand placed over his eyes to protect himself from the sun’s glare. “The colors look like those green spots in soldier uniforms…”

“Maybe it’s because the ride is called toy soldiers… Basically, we’re soldiers dropped off at the warzone by a helicopter!” Haera nudges her twin brother. “We’re gonna fall from the sky!”

“It’s 82-feet high. I’ve seen clips of pussies fainting when shit like this drops. And I’m no gynecologist, but I know a pussy when I see one.” The knife thrower pins a look at the younger.

Jaehyun taps the back of his fingers against Taeyong’s cheek, whispering. “Watch your mouth.”

“Pussies?” Haera repeats in a high-pitched tone, catching the attention of a few adults lined up before them. They give her a funny look before giggling with their friends.

The sharpshooter attempts to explain to her wholesomely but _the_ living demon chimes in with his mischievous eyes and blunt tongue, literally messing up the context and teaching the little girl the wonders of expressing yourself in foul language.

Bickering like children is how the kingpins get in their seats, back to back with the twins. Taeyong still hasn’t stopped telling Haera nonsense and soon goes on about Jaehyun being a church boy in his past life and spreading the holy Gospel in print-outs by going house to house, his tone grossed out. Because of it, the thought of Taeyong being a model parent pops like a short-lived bubble in Jaehyun’s head. It was farfetched anyway.

Slowly, they are drawn from the ground until their feet hang 25 meters high. A jolly music plays while the controls are being checked and prepared before it abruptly stops, and that’s when the ‘parachutes’ drop, screams filling the air.

Taeyong glances down, his black hair swaying with the wind while the seats are being pulled up again for the second drop. “That was anticlimactic. I was expecting enemies shooting out of their covers to attack us with ArmaLites. What do you think it would be, huh? Colt AR-15?”

Dumbfounded, Jaehyun stares at his husband who is back at his bullshit, sadly. “The poster at the gate doesn’t state the involvement of roleplaying soldiers.”

“Aw, boohoo.”

The second drop happens and takes Jaehyun by surprise. It’s lower than the first drop but quite faster, delivering the same thrilling outcome, then they’re back to the 82-feet drop for the last one.

The teen girl across them already has her soul sucked out of her limp body.

Haera asks for a bottle of water-not cold, when they leave Toy Soldiers. Jaehyun volunteers to look for a store, leaving Taeyong with the twins.

“Please watch them and don’t go anywhere, okay? I’ll be back right away.”

Silence stretches out among the three even though it’s loud around with the mingling of piercing, childish screams and joyous laughter. Haera glances down her closed fist, legs dangling from where she seats on a bench with her brother before counting down from 3 under her breath, tiny fingers loosening their grip.

“Taeyong?”

She calls his name for the second, third time, but she gets no response. Is her voice not loud enough?

But if she dares yell, he’s only going to scold her, right? After all, noisy kids get slapped because it’s a disturbance.

Does the rule apply in such a festive place like this, though?

Might as well try.

“Taeyong!”

That gets her what she wants with the knife thrower whipping his head towards the twins, gaze questioning. Words are not needed for him to tell them they’re being a nuisance.

Despite the cold treatment, she doesn’t waver. “Thank you for standing up for me!” Gratitude shows itself not just in her words but through her face as well. Big, brown eyes look up with shine within them and no trace of the sadness she was hit with this morning can be found.

Taeyong slips a hand in his pocket and mindlessly scratches the corner of a poster plastered on the wall he’s leaning against. “When did I do that? I remember nothing of such.” It’s so like him to refuse to acknowledge anything remotely close to an act of kindness. Kindness, whenever it comes out of him whether on purpose or not, irks him to no end. It’s not his brand.

The little girl shrugs and plays with the ends of her short hair. “We never got to play outside like we do now, and since we don’t have a lot of friends, roughhousing never happened before. It’s the first time a big person talked to me that way…”

“And that will be the last.”

What does that even mean? Taeyong rips the poster off the wall, crumpling it before tossing it to the nearest bin. If a camera has caught it, he can always pay the fine.

“How sure are you it will be the last?” Haera exchanges a glance with Haechan before looking back at the adult. “I can be clumsy later, tomorrow, and the next days!”

“Now that’s inexcusable. You can’t be looking for trouble every second of the day.”

“I can’t help it sometimes!” A pout forms on her tiny face.

Feeling like he shouldn’t just let the conversation die without reassuring the kid, Taeyong nudges her dangling foot with his boot. “Kid, you saw how the guard backed away when our eyes met, yeah? You,” he cocks his head at Haechan, “you saw that too. Why do you think so?”

“Because you’re scary.” Haechan deadpans, point-blank, which makes Taeyong smirk at the boy’s courage. He’s getting that bravery back from when they first met.

“Damn right I am. I’d be surprised if someone isn’t scared of me. Do you even know about the great satisfaction of knowing people fear you? It’s literally the simplest form of power.” He clicks his tongue. “Death awaits anyone who tries to take me down.”

“You can’t be serious! Killing is bad!”

Taeyong finally leaves his spot to crouch in front of the twins, poking Haera’s forehead. “How did you even deduce my statement into first-degree murder? Kid, bad and good...neither exists to me. In this world there is only a matter of survival. Morality is a social construct. Just because you were born to the norm that good is offering your seat to the elder doesn’t mean it _is_ good. You’re doing it because it’s what everyone has adjusted to. What if we flip the world, hm?”

This time, Haechan easily offers an opinion. “But good means not being scowled at and bad is the opposite. It just is!” He reasons in frustration.

From such a close proximity, he clearly sees the frown on the boy’s face deepening the longer he fails to say anything.

He speaks again, tone bland and disinterested. “When the world began there were no morals. Humans did what they did to eat, to mate, to live. Regardless of how those were acquired and no one batted an eye. It’s nature. We just evolved. It’s only here now because of delusional preachers.

Right and wrong is black and white that has been shoved to weak people like you because humans don’t wanna deal with complexity. They don’t wanna look through things they can’t grasp so their mindset stays narrow and they passed it down to generations. Then things were divided into two, caging your thoughts and decisions and actions in just two fucking boxes. Do you get me? I won’t be surprised if you didn’t. Be honest. I smell lies from a close distance.”

“It’s a little deep…” Haera muses.

“Thought so.”

A sudden thought occurs to her. “So does papa shouting and slapping me mean it’s not really bad? Am I not supposed to cry when it hurts?”

She must have said something she’s not supposed to for Haechan quickly pulls her arm, eyes wide in alarm that fleetingly meets Taeyong’s as though trying to see if he’s picking up more than the older lets on. “Be quiet… Don’t tell strangers things that will make papa look bad.”

“He abuses you.” Taeyong states it like it’s a fact which the boy quickly rejects with a shake of his head.

“That’s not abuse. We’d been bad kids and bad kids get scolded.”

“Perhaps. Now this sparks my curiosity.” Taeyong stands up again and parts the twins so he can sit in between them, but on the backrest of the bench with his feet on the seat itself. “What did you even do? Still, adults taking it out on kids are the worst.”

Unforgiving venom drips in his tone, his words holding more meaning to them than one. Unforgotten memories hit him one at a time like they never want to be buried under barren ground.

Imagining the _worst_ he lived through in the hands of his father being done to these twins makes his skin crawl. Taeyong bites down a jerking finger.

Where the hell did Jaehyun go? He’s the one who knows how to talk to children in a socially acceptable manner.

“…How can you say they’re the worst when there’s no right and wrong in the first place like you said?”

Something smacks Taeyong directly on the face and petulant whining comes out of him. “Fuuuck. I knew I shouldn’t have said anything. Do I look like a philosopher to you?” His eyes roll. “See it this way – Good and bad is not automatically right and wrong. You can say that giving up your seat to a woman is good. But is it the _right_ thing? You are tired. You worked 15 hours for your shift. She demanded to be seated just because, in her words, she’s a lady and men are supposed to treat women like royalty.”

He slightly gesticulates, emphasizing his sentences.

“Men are not supposed to treat women like they’re royalty. Men _and_ women are supposed to treat each other equal, alright. So it’s in your discretion if you wanna give her your seat if she’s not in any way invalid or what the fuck ever reason there is that requires her to sit the fuck down. You are tired and you will sit because you deserve it; don’t mind no motherfucker. If she says she’s tired too, well you sat there first. Chivalry is not imposed. If they didn’t wanna stand they should’ve driven a car but guess what? She’s a broke ass bitch who has no money, no car, only attitude you didn’t ask.”

When he finishes explaining, he looks like he’s about to challenge someone to a fight. Haechan blinks a few times to take in everything that just happened and dumbly scratches his head. “I’m too young to understand it all in one go…”

Haera shares the same sentiment.

Taeyong’s shoulders sag as his looks at them flatly. “You’re aware you just made me waste my spit, right? It’s okay. I have a lot of spit to waste.” A quick glance around and there’s still no sight of a Jeong Jaehyun. “Where the fuck is that dimwit? He’s only buying water, not a whole supermarket.”

“…Taeyong, then do you think it was okay for papa to do that?”

The second kingpin sighs. “You guys are contradicting yourself. Thought you didn’t wanna put him in a certain light? After those things I said, do you think what he did was bad or good? Then ask yourself if it was okay. Maybe it just is.” He says, shooting a pointed look at the little boy. “Plus, you guys are literally chicks. What could you even do to warrant physical violence? Why, do you wanna go back to him?”

The twins are mum.

“Say it. Oh, I know now. You’d rather he takes you back than stay with us because I’m rude to you, correct? Cool. Let me tell you, gremlins – he ain’t coming back.”

There, he finally said it. Unclear, but it should make the two understand they’re waiting for nothing. What’s the use of keeping the truth a secret when it’s going to be inevitably exposed? Jaehyun is only making things difficult for himself by giving these gremlins false hopes.

“What do you mean, mister…?”

“Your daredevil of a daddy isn’t coming back so forget about it. Tsk. After everything Jaehyun did for you, you still have the guts to think about another father?”

Haechan gets off the bench, face unreadable. “Papa is our father, not Jaehyun.”

Taeyong’s face contorts in stunned disbelief. “Wait ‘til he fucking hears about this–”

He doesn’t get to finish speaking when a series of gunshots resonate in the air and then the whole park is sent into complete chaos. People of all ages run about, confused and in panic as they look for their friends and family while trying to get out of the place as soon as possible. The gunshots stop only for a good few seconds before it rings again, familiar and deafening, alarming.

“What the fuck?”

“What’s happening?” Haechan cries out, holding his sister’s hand. “Why is everybody screaming?”

“Someone managed to take a fucking gun in?” He roughly pulls the kids to the side, away from the uproarious frenzy. “What kind of fuckery–where the fuck is Jaehyun?!”

This is what he hates about not being armed. Not even a single knife is strapped to him. What’s worse than being cornered is not knowing where the danger is. Left with nothing else to do as the state of the park worsens, he drags the twins through the flow of people, cursing and shoving aside whoever blocks his way out, not even checking the condition of the frightened kids with him until a mascot falls over right before them, sprawled to the ground as its headpiece rolls away, stepped on and kicked by the others.

“Clumsy bastard, get out my way!” If they stay a second longer in that place without knowing where the shooter is, they’re going to die. Not a single place in the park will be safe enough to hide in especially when it’s chaotic. It’ll only excite the gunman even more.

Taeyong is about to carry the twins and step over the person when the latter looks up at him through damp, caramel strands. A pair of eyes blank out before widening and then the path is suddenly free, the mascot scurrying away and dragged by the terrified guests.

Haechan tugs at his hand, tearing up. “Mister, let’s go! It’s dangerous!”

“What…” He breathlessly murmurs. Ears deaf to the pleas of the kids. “What the fuck is that…”

It’s the first time in his life he’s ever rendered totally speechless, breath coming out in slow puffs as his heart hammers in its cage. A quick glance at the kids is all it takes before he comes to an impulsive decision, forcing himself through people and shoving them to a corner. “Stay here.” Those are his last words and then he’s gone to find someone as the twins’ calls gradually weaken.

Taeyong scans the unending stream of people. It seems like the park closed gates to prevent the rest from getting out. Yet instead of calming down, everyone just gets more agitated. He turns here and there, trying to find what he’s looking for but to no avail. He comes to a dead end when Jaehyun appears before him as he turns again, the younger’s face a pale shade of horror.

“Taeyong! Taeyong, I’m sorry I lined up at the store. There was a shooter, did you hear the shots? They’re trying to ease everyone but it’s a mess–” Jaehyun abruptly stops when it dawns on him that his husband is alone. “Where are the twins?”

The knife thrower is mumbling, has clearly not heard a single thing Jaehyun said as his eyes keep shifting everywhere.

“Yong–”

“Get away from me.”

“Taeyong!” Jaehyun shouts, gripping the other’s shoulder. “Where the fuck are they!?”

Taeyong stops, only to glare at the younger menacingly. “Get your hands off of me if you don’t want me to snap your fingers one by one.”

Momentary shock cripples him but Jaehyun gets over it in a snap, following his husband again. “Stop walking away! Dammit, Taeyong! You had one job!” The thought of the kids getting hurt feels like a punch in his gut. Regret washes over him, thoughts in a jumble.

“Look, I’m busy. I left them over there. If the gremlins are gone when I told them to stay then it’s not my fucking problem anymore!”

Jaehyun wants to curse him out, to hit his face, anything to put some sense into him. But the twins are more important than beating Lee Taeyong right now. He leaves a silent promise to confront the older after this and starts to look for Haera and Haechan who could be in pain, god forbid.

Two hours pass. Authorities have gathered around the park to investigate, to interrogate people who could give them a lead. But all they got was a plethora of I don’t knows and a death toll of five and three others critical at the nearest hospital. Everyone is escorted out as the park temporarily closes down for investigation. They said it could be an inside job if a weapon was snuck easily inside the amusement park.

Jaehyun trudges down the hall, both hands occupied with the twins’ trembling hands. He’s exhausted and it’s obvious on the darkness looming over him. With one swipe of the keycard, the door opens and in they go. Jaehyun first notices the emptiness of the room before the bathroom door being ajar. Inwardly fuming, he settles the kids on the bed and tells them that whatever happens, they ought to cover their ears and close their eyes.

He then disappears inside the bathroom, locking the door behind. As the lights switch on, his furious eyes land on Lee Taeyong who looks like a complete mess with his loose hair and unbuttoned shirt, gripping the edge of the sink as he stares right through his own reflection on the broken, bloodied mirror.

His knuckles are equally red. 

“What the fucking hell was that?”

Taeyong doesn’t budge.

“Are you not going to explain yourself?” Jaehyun continues softly, but his voice quivers with boiling anger. “We almost lost them. What if something bad happened?”

Blue eyes slowly navigate towards the other’s reflection.

“What kind of bad are we talking about?”

“You…!” The sharpshooter reaches out towards the older who swiftly swats his hand away, staining it with blood.

Wiping his bloodied knuckles on his shirt, Taeyong hisses. “They’re not my responsibility so quit expecting me to play nanny to some orphans you plucked off the street.”

Jaehyun seethes, he sees red, and then he lunges to give a bruising blow to Taeyong’s cheek, sending the older staggering before hitting the wall. He hit him so hard he could almost feel his joints break when he opens his fist.

“I tolerate you because you’re not gonna change! I accepted it all, Ethan! But spare the children from your insane apathy, will you?!”

Taeyong slides down the floor, panting as the tip of his tongue runs across the cut on the inside of his cheek. Blood has always tasted heavenly, even more when it’s his own. “What, so they’re more important now? I sacrificed a lot for you. Is it so easy to throw me aside now, my darling?”

“I’m not… It’s incomparable. Why would I choose–”

“Well, I’m not like you,” Taeyong’s head droops to the side as he glances at the broken mirror and slowly pushes himself up to approach the sink, washing his hands like nothing happened, countenance calm but brooding. “I had to choose, Jaehyun. And I fucking chose to look for my sister.” In the middle of his speech, Jaehyun starts pacing. “She was there; I saw her.”

“Oh fuck you! I know I might’ve implied that you could be right but I only did that to gain your approval of my decisions, okay? So you could give the kids, the _existing_ people some chance. Taehee does not exist. She’s _dead._ ”

Karma works fast. It starts off slow but it finishes like the wind, quick and precise. Jaehyun thought the older was merely going to grab the towel to dry his hands but then he finds himself with his back pressed against the sink the next second, the edge digging on his skin. He grunts in pain but does not fight.

“Say that again.” Taeyong’s face is shoved close to Jaehyun’s, teeth gritting. “I dare you to fucking say that again. I saw it with my own eyes, and I can’t be fucking hallucinating, Jaehyun! Say that again. Open your mouth before I do it myself and rip your tongue out!”

“Is this real, are you really mad? Or is it just one of those episodes where you think you’re mad but it’s just acting and you don’t even realize it, hm? You can’t be _this_ mad, Taeyong. You’re a psychopath.” Jaehyun laughs, fingers enclosed around Taeyong’s wrist.

“I can be mad if I want to. Does it matter? I’m gonna hurt you so bad it’s gonna fool you into thinking I _am_ mad.”

On another occasion, they would find themselves feeling something else, something that would bring them in the throes of passion than anger during a fight. But today is unlike any other. They can’t even talk without breathing fire.

The sharpshooter’s laughter dies down to a cold chuckle. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were so into your sister that it’s borderline unhealthy for something platonic.”

“Well do you?”

“Do I what.”

“Know better.”

Jaehyun’s face darkens. “You disgust me.”

The door opens and he fails to warn Haera not to take a step closer. She runs towards Taeyong and tugs on his shirt, “Please stop fighti–” but her hope to be a mediator does not prevail.

“Don’t touch me!” Screams Taeyong, mind still clouded. And as he shouts, arm swatting the tiny hand touching him, he accidentally shoves her aside and Haera kisses the floor for the second time that day.

“Haera!” Jaehyun pushes Taeyong away to pick up the poor girl, checking if she’s hurt anywhere.

Haechan stands frozen at the doorway, pained eyes on the knife thrower. They’re small but hold a lot of emotions that Taeyong barely understands.

Biting down his tongue and all the toxicity that he doesn’t want to spill, Jaehyun urges the boy to go back to bed. He then fishes out his phone and dials, eyes darting back to the man left inside the bathroom.

“Pack up. We’re going home.”

Jaehyun slams the front door of the penthouse close, its beeping loud in the awkward silence of the room. Intangible tension coils around them especially the two kingpins.

Taking the earliest flight to Bordeaux proves to be helpful for if Jaehyun stays longer in the capital, he might lose it.

“It’s been three hours,” Taeyong breaks the silence as Jaehyun makes the twins sit on the couch. “You can’t possibly still be furious.”

“This isn’t something trivial for you to complain about my anger, Taeyong. You haven’t even apologized yet, look at that thick skin of yours.”

After dumping the luggage in his own, Taeyong heads to the kitchen to get something to drink. He carelessly puts down the pitcher of juice on the table, almost breaking it. “Is that all? Then sorry for getting mad at you.”

It earns him a scoff from the first kingpin. “This is too much. We came there to have fun but you ruined it.”

“I’m not the gunman.”

“You know what I’m talking about.” Jaehyun sits down and takes off his blazer.

“I always ruin things for you, don’t I? I never did anything right.”

The sharpshooter is quick to catch on. This trick didn’t work on him the first time and it will not work on him now. “Guilt tripping me won’t work. I know the tricks up your sleeve and honestly, they’re getting old. Have you already forgotten your vows? I thought we’d work together? Why aren’t you _cooperating_?” Jaehyun stresses the last word frustratedly.

Why is he still getting frustrated? He should know how to move around the knife thrower by now. Even if the weight of the situation at the moment’s heavier with innocent kids involved with them, this should be as easy as 1 2 3.

Over and over he reminds himself that this is the best Ethan can offer. This is already the ultimate transformation from the untamed monster he first met. And he’s thankful, he’s happy. It may not be overt, may not be loud and blinding, but the changes are there. Taeyong is adapting.

However, the twins are making it hard for a man who doesn’t believe in family bond to put some effort into believing it now.

_Understanding, Jaehyun, you need more of it._

Taeyong gulps down the juice and leaves the glass in the sink before hopping on the countertop, watching him. “The vow is a case by case basis. It’s not applicable every single time especially if you’re being unfair.”

That effectively gets Jaehyun to sit properly. “Do you hear yourself? Since when am I unfair? Leave my mistakes in the past, Taeyong. Yours were already long forgotten. I really thought you’d mature, but it’s a case by case basis, you said? Maturity comes with selfish convenience?”

Haera pouts, her head aching as the adults continue to talk and use big words. She mentally notes to read books for big people to learn these cool-sounding vocabularies.

“Hypocrisy is your brand. You just said not to bring up the past.”

“And I’m not recounting anything. So tell me, ever since we got engaged, hardly did I ever put anything before you and your wishes, right? Because that’s what’s right. I had been unfair to you too many times and I swear I’m not doing it again. What about you? What did you do now? I asked you to watch the kids and you didn’t.”

“I don’t give a shit if you don’t believe me but I saw what I saw.” Taeyong opens the fridge with his foot, miraculously finding an ice pack and takes it out with the same foot. Then he presses it gently on his bruising cheek.

Jaehyun suddenly pities the man. He shouldn’t have punched Taeyong. Regardless of the reason, he shouldn’t have let his anger act.

“Taeyong, it’s been four years. Four years since we got the picture of Lee Namgyu and Lee Taehee. Why would she be alive now? If she was alive all along, why didn’t she appear four years ago?”

Taeyong tongues the wound on his cheek, barely wincing when he opens the cut. He stares without seeing at the wall opposite him, gaze lifeless. “I will be able to answer those if you just let me run after her and ask those questions.”

“The only thing you’re getting out of it is _nothing_. And you know that. I know you’re not overusing, I know you’ve been smoking behind my back, don’t even deny it – but that’s not enough for you to see things again. There’s not enough nicotine in you to mess with your head again.”

“Then that only means I’m telling the truth.”

“You could also be lying. There are always two possibilities.”

“Two possibilities, my ass.” His head lolls back, eyes trained on Jaehyun’s. “You always sound like you connect dots when you talk about my brain. Can I not be reasonable? You know I’m hella smart. Did it not cross your pea-sized brain that I might actually be telling the truth?”

Jaehyun whispers under his breath. “That unrealistic 220 is certainly miscalculated.”

“What’s a nicotine?” Haechan asks and yawns adorably, fist rubbing his eye.

Taeyong smirks, already opening one of the drawers near him. “Wanna see?”

Jaehyun raises a brow.

“For someone who has the kind of job you have, you’re a phony straight edge.” The drawer slams close, startling the sleepy boy.

The younger kingpin shakes his head and walks up to Taeyong, taking the ice pack from him so he can be the one to gently press it on the older’s bruise. “We’re not discussing you activating the psycho button today. The pressing matter at hand is your negligence towards the kids. And hurting Haera.”

As he looks at the little girl with a lap full of a sleepy male gremlin, he recalls preaching to her about the adults’ lack of rights to lay a hand on children. Taeyong chuckles. He’s a big plaster saint.

Remorse? It’s a foreign notion.

“Maybe if she didn’t meddle then–”

Jaehyun painfully presses down Taeyong’s cheek. “Stop making excuses to save your ass!”

“Stop cutting me off! What, do you identify as a knife now? That’s called Otherkin.”

A sigh escapes the younger before he shakes his head (it seems like he’s doing it a lot nowadays) and pulls out his phone, texting someone. “This is not gonna work and I know how it will.”

“What are you doing.”

“None of your business.” He hits sends and goes straight to the kids’ room, grabbing more clothes to put in the luggage they haven’t unpacked yet, thank goodness.

Taeyong follows, eyes wide. “Are you finally getting rid of them?”

“In a way. I thought it was fine having them here as long as they don’t bother you.”

“Thought so too.”

Jaehyun finishes packing and sits with the kids again, telling them stuff Taeyong cannot hear from his comfortable seat at the dining area. He rolls a lollipop candy on his tongue, toes wiggling while he stares at the ceiling mindlessly, humming an indistinct tune.

Almost an hour goes by before the monitor attached near the front door buzzes to signal a visitor’s arrival. Jaehyun gets it.

Taeyong abruptly stands up, the feet of the chair screeching against tiled floor. His head tilts in uncertainty at the sight of his mother.

“What are you doing here?”

“I thought you were smart? You should be able to put two and two together.”

“Jaehyun, Taeyong…” She greets with that ever-loving smile and looks at the twins. “Hello…”

“Hey Léonie,” the sharpshooter rubs a hand down his face. “I’m sorry to bother you but it’s a tough time right now and we don’t really want the kids to get the short end of the stick.”

The old woman takes a seat and brushes her fingers through Haera’s hair. “Is there a problem?” She asks as she finally takes in her son’s state – the dyed hair, the bandaged knuckles and the injured face – and coughs, covering her mouth with a hand.

“There is. That’s why they can’t be here. I hope you understand.”

Taeyong waves his grape lollipop in the air. “Hi, hello! I’m right here. Can’t you see me? I’m not a ghost.” He approaches them. “You’re dumping the gremlins to her? Don’t I have a say in this?”

Jaehyun gives him a funny look despite still feeling highly vexed. “Why are you asking me that? You were just expecting them to leave for good.”

Léonie looks disappointed at what she hears. Taeyong shrugs. “Can’t penalize me for that.”

“Maybe it’s best if papa picks us up…” Haera seems to have forgotten what they were told about their father not coming back.

“That’s right! Didn’t you tell me you miss him, and that no matter how many gifts Jaehyun gave you he will not be your father?”

It feels like Jaehyun’s heart shattered to pieces. There’s no sound, but it breaks. Haechan looks down to avoid his gaze, looking guilty.

Well, isn’t that the truth? He’s trying to put himself in a place he doesn’t belong, trying to put himself in some kids’ lives where he isn’t a part of. The truth always hurts, but it doesn’t mean it hurts less when it always hits you through your lies.

He clears his throat and hands their stuff to his mother-in-law. “Your papa is busy. Léonie is nice, she will look after you.”

“She can’t even look after herself.” Taeyong says in a fake concern. “How heartless of you to give her more headache. That’s like axing an already broken foundation.”

Léonie smiles and waves the kids over who surprisingly have no disagreement with the set-up. “Don’t worry, Taeyong. We’ll be fine. I’ve been wishing to see these angels. You’re okay staying with me for the time being, right?”

Haechan nods. “You look nice…”

Of course, Taeyong doesn’t miss out on giving an unnecessary comment that everyone gladly ignores. He huffs in indignation. “Just go. If you’re taking them, just go.”

Jaehyun nods reassuringly, kissing their heads. “You’re gonna have a fun time with her.” He then turns to his husband’s mother. “Léonie, thank you so much.” He is very much grateful of her. Taeyong should really learn to appreciate what he has.

“It’s nothing. Taeyong?” Léonie glances at his cheek. “Please be okay.”

And then they’re gone, with a staff Jaehyun asked to help carrying the luggage.

“Not gonna lie, the whole Léonie taking care of kids is ironically funny.” Taeyong walks towards the master’s bedroom to change, dunking his lollipop in an empty fish bowl on the way. “I’m not worried.”

He discards the button-down and changes into a pair of worn out black, long-sleeved shirt and sweatpants, his go-to fashion outside work and comes out with a big smile. “Ah, I missed the peace and quie–”

Jaehyun chops down his neck where it’s not fatal but enough for Taeyong to lose consciousness. “Sorry!” He manages to catch the dead weight and drags it to the practice room, stuffs it with clothes before leaving his husband there.

When he wakes up, there’s a splitting pain on his neck. Taeyong rolls around the matted floor before sitting up and resting against the wall, eyes adjusting in the darkness of the room.

He instantly recognizes where he is. Hurriedly he goes for the door, jangles the knob but it doesn’t budge. Taeyong hits the light switch and kicks the door as hard as he can. He’s sure Jaehyun heard it, if the other’s even in the penthouse.

He’s been locked from the outside. The smartass likely put a new lock.

“...Bastard.”

Thudding sounds echo in the dim practice room. It happens repeatedly, seeing no stop since a good hour ago. Taeyong gets up a minute after throwing the last dart to the board to pluck them one by one and goes back to his previous spot on the floor, back against the wall.

A single corner bulb is the only thing that serves light to the whole space, its brightness only reaching half of the knife thrower’s face. If one stares close enough, you can see a faint spark shining from this man’s eyes.

“Glooooooooria, in excelsis Deo!”

To get rid of the overwhelming silence, Taeyong takes it upon himself to counter it with his own rendition of an untimely holiday song that reminds him of his childhood – how the snow falls and covers the road, the houses, and lands on the tip of his red nose. Most especially, how he used to make snowballs and throw it at his sister’s face.

To him, Christmas is nothing but coldness and yellow blinking lights that look like the butt of a firefly. He remembers watching from his room how neighborhood children played outside and enjoyed the holidays while he was kept inside because he would only cause trouble. Léonie wasn’t wrong. But he deserved to play, too.

Christmas that time was dull. And it always is. Tonight, his singing takes him to an advance holiday.

It’s cold as the wind blows through the open window. His voice grows louder and louder, almost shouting the lyrics before a knock interrupts him, and he scoots close to press his ear against the door.

“It’s not Christmas yet.”

Taeyong pulls away to stare at the door. The words are muffled as they come from outside so he presses the side of his face back to the door, hoping to get the message clear.

Soon as he gets it he scoffs and purposely sings another Christmas song while throwing darts at the board across.

“Silent night,” Ironically it’s loud, “Holy night!” He stops after a line and gathers the darts once again before plopping down the matted floor. “It’s really silent here. You should’ve given me a little TV while I was out like a light.” Taeyong glances at the pile of neatly folded clothes on the couch and laughs inaudibly to himself. “At least you gave me clothes.”

Sounds of footstep go here and there before it stops. The light from outside spills to the narrow space beneath the door. Taeyong then lies on his stomach to peek and only sees a leg.

“What are you doing?”

He hears some rustling of papers.

Jaehyun adjusts his glasses and reads through a report. “Reviewing a file. I grew bored of doing work in the living room.”

“Ah, okay.” Taeyong nods though the other cannot see him and sits up again to count the darts he has. It’s one of the limited things he can do to entertain himself. Not in the mood to throw knives or use the bows, he’s left with the only game he can play inside the temporary prison he’s in.

“I’m really sorry about this.” Jaehyun sighs before putting the papers down, looking at the door as though if he tries hard enough, he can see the blank expression on Taeyong’s face. He has a creative mind so he just imagines it, imagines the older blowing his bangs out of his eyes.

“No, you’re not.” Taeyong disagrees, fully believing that Jaehyun isn’t one bit apologetic about the whole situation. He did it to his husband; he can’t be sorry. Jaehyun doesn’t say anything to his protest – that says a lot. “How do I get food?”

“Are you hungry? You don’t usually eat dinner.”

“Not hungry. But I will be hungry tomorrow morning and I can’t go out. So how do I get food?”

“I’m opening the door every meal time to give you food… But don’t think of escaping, please.” A hint of warning can be detected in Jaehyun’s tone that almost makes Taeyong want to test and see what happens if he does run away.

“What is this gonna do to me, though?” He looks down at his darts again and bites the end, trying to bite it off. It only pains his teeth. “It isn’t like the place I was in. There are no nurses, no other patients, no art and cooking classes, no morning Zumba.” Taeyong kneels and reaches for the switch to turn on the main light. “Are you my personal nurse? I used to have a female nurse. I suppose it’s more fun with a male nurse because if I wanna pee and I feel lazy holding my dick, you can hold it for me! My nurse before didn’t wanna do it when I suggested that. Said I was a pervert. But I was simply lazy.”

He giggles at the flashback and sits close to the door again to sketch random patterns on it with his finger. “You should give me a bath, wash my ass when I shit. What if I can’t hold it in? You should be ready to catch it with your bare hands ‘cause patients can’t dirty the floor! Oh wait, I’m not a patient, am I? We’re not roleplaying, are we?”

His nonsensical rambling makes Jaehyun smile. “Did the nurses really do those?” The younger knows Taeyong is doing this on purpose to give himself something to think about. Because if the older lets his own mind wander anywhere it wants to, it might bring him to a dangerous place. So Jaehyun goes along.

“Mm, only to those who couldn’t look out for themselves. Those who are too lost in their own world. It happens when you already have a life sentence in the worst prison called _mind_. But generally, they didn’t let us do things on our own. I hated that, you know. I felt disabled.”

There’s a pause before Taeyong hears again from Jaehyun.

“I only locked you up because I want you to reflect.”

A nastily bitten nail scratches against the door.

“I can reflect without being treated like a prisoner.”

“That’s not what I meant you to feel.” Jaehyun sighs and picks up the papers once again, eyes skimming over sentences he doesn’t register. “Please listen to me.”

Taeyong scratches the door again, repeats the action until he breaks another nail. It keeps his hand occupied, keeps it from twitching. “So what now? You chopped down my neck, put me here for an indefinite period. Do I get to talk to you all day like you’re a doctor? My journal should be here.”

“Where is it?” More rustling comes from outside. “I can give it to you.”

The scratching stops and Taeyong tears the broken nail, flicking it somewhere. “No need. There really isn’t much to write. I can reflect by talking to myself.”

“…That doesn’t sound relieving.” Of course, it doesn’t. How is a psychopath going to lecture himself about his own mistakes when it’s their nature to not conform and do basically whatever crosses their mind, fuck the consequences?

“You have so little faith in me.”

A bang against the door startles Jaehyun. That sounds like a punch. “I didn’t use my injured hand, don’t worry.”

 _Oh, thank god._ Lee Taeyong is the type to injure him out of boredom so it wouldn’t be a surprise. Nonetheless worrying.

“I trust you not to do anything rash inside. You got weapons… Please don’t do anything stupid.”

“Bastard. Then what else am I gonna play with? I’ve been throwing darts but this will not suffice if you’re planning to keep me here for liiiike, a week. I can’t keep throwing darts 24/7.”

“How did you kill time in the asylum?”

As soon as the question is out of his mouth, Jaehyun feels like hitting his head on the wall. Wait, that will hurt. He just makes do with rolling the papers and hitting himself with it. It’s been years, why is he only asking that now?

 _Fuck._ He never really cared, huh? Invictus really consumed him during that point of his life.

Thankfully, Taeyong doesn’t have a problem answering it. “When we couldn’t go out? Ah… I either made stories in my head or read books I borrowed from an asylum friend or calculated the size of my room.”

“…I don’t know how you did the last one but do that for now – I mean I’ll give you books later if you don’t wanna sleep.”

Taeyong hums and slides down the floor, legs propped on the armrest of the couch. Without knowing what to say, he simply inspects his nails, frowning at its nasty state.

Jaehyun breaks the silence. “What you said to me in the hotel when we were fighting…” He can’t even say it. Just thinking about the possibility of the memory’s implication makes him want to hit his head on the wall, for real.

Blue eyes flicker left and right as Taeyong sifts through the events back in Disneyland. “Which one?”

“About your sister.” It’s almost too painful to say and Jaehyun rubs his temple, willing the images to dissipate.

The response comes right away in a nonchalant tone. “I didn’t say shit. You were the one accusing me of incest. My insides flipped in disgust when you put that in my head.”

The sharpshooter winces. “I’m sorry… I was furious and I wasn’t thinking. But nothing of that is true, right?”

“You’re the one who accuses me randomly to justify your anger.” Taeyong turns, feet now at the door and roughly kicks where he thinks Jaehyun’s head might be leaning. Bulls eye. Jaehyun whines, slapping the door in retaliation. “I was referencing Maleficent. It’s a major shock that you didn’t recognize it at all. Couldn’t pass up on the chance to play the evil queen even without a script. It really fit the situation, you know?”

As though a stake has been pulled out of Jaehyun’s chest, the cool flow of relief fills the void right away. “I forgive you. Not just about that, but also… why we fought in the first place.”

“Losing them was not my intention.”

“…Okay,” the younger relents. There’s no use bringing the misunderstanding further it would be counterproductive. “Well, just to let you know, they’re gonna be calling all tourists to ask again. Especially those who got to leave before the cops arrived.”

The thought makes Taeyong scoff. “Cops. I can’t believe I need to cooperate with _cops,_ of all people. Hey, what did you feel when they were talking to you?” A grin appears on his face, foot gently stomping on the door. “Did the hairs on your arms raise? Those cops…little do they know, arguably the biggest criminal is right in front of them. Isn’t it funny?” Gradually, the older’s body shakes in amusement as laughter quite literally takes over him. Taeyong sits up, places his hands on the door and taps. “Oi, imagine being the cop – asking you if you saw the gunman when you are literally a gunman, organizes human trafficking, a smuggler, investor in the prostitution ring among others…”

Lee Taeyong loses it and doubles over, clutching his stomach. “I can’t wait to talk to them!”

Jaehyun begins to chortle as well as the other’s highly contagious laughter passes through. “Whatever happens, your name will be cleared anyway.”

“When are they calling?”

“Anytime. You have your phone there. Saw it?”

Still bent over, Taeyong glides across the floor like a snail, looking totally stupid while doing so and grabs the phone on the couch. “Have it!” He crawls back to his spot just beside the door and rests his weight against it, fingers already tapping familiarly to a mobile game. “So we’ve finally settled it. Why aren’t you letting me out?”

Jaehyun’s smile falters. “Reflection lasts for a few days.”

“This is so idiotic,” the knife thrower mutters, eyes shifting as they follow the character he plays. “I hope you know that. When I get bored I’ll just jump right out the window and hope I don’t break a lot of bones.” An explosion occurs in the game, its lights swimming around the irises of Taeyong’s eyes.

It’s not impossible for the older to pull a stunt, but it’ll be impossible for him to survive and tell Jaehyun, ‘see?’

“We’re on the topmost floor. Whatever bone that will be left when you hit the ground is shattered and you will be unrecognizable.”

Taeyong cackles, mischievous. “Yeahhh, with my busted brains and gummy, crooked limbs. Thanks for giving me a blanket, by the way! The couch here will be fine so don’t worry about me. When you get horny though,” he pauses the game and glances up, thinking. “We can have phone sex since the signal here is good. Or you can stand there at the door and we can jerk off together. How does that sound?”

As expected from the shameless man.

“That’s your main concern, huh? So brazen.”

“I don’t know!” Taeyong says. “But mark my words; When I get out of here, I will wreck your ass.”

Jaehyun’s eyes widen. “Hyung…”

“Hyung? I’m hyung now? What happened to just Taeyong? Or Ethan? You call me hyung only when you want something. Laid ease, laid ease.” He chuckles and presses harder on his phone as if it’ll help in defeating his virtual enemies. “Even if you don’t say it, I know what you want.”

The sharpshooter exhales and kneels, eyes closed and forehead pressed against the barrier separating them. “And you’re gonna give it?” A smirk slowly unfurls on the softness of his lips as his thumb hooks on the waistband of his pants, subtly tugging. “Somehow, it’s hard to pinpoint when you’re being serious.”

“I already told you.” Taeyong clicks his tongue, unknowing of Jaehyun’s position nor his inner struggle. “Mark my words. Mark it. Document it. Now leave me alone; ‘m playing.”

Jaehyun’s smirk widens, almost evilly. His thumb slips out of his waistband before he gathers the papers and stares at the door once again, putting a particular reminder in the back of his head.

The set-up is not as difficult as he first thought it was. He sets an alarm for when it’s time to eat. Jaehyun wakes up in the break of dawn to check on Taeyong, knocking thrice to check if the other’s awake. When he gets no answer, he unlocks the room and pushes the door open only to get startled by Taeyong’s head poking out, eyes wide.

“Can I go out now?”

Jaehyun rubs his eyes and pushes Taeyong’s head back inside. “Not yet. Did you sleep?”

Taeyong stubbornly pokes his head out again, pushing back against Jaehyun’s insistent finger on his forehead. “Do I look like I had eight hours of healthy sleep?” He tugs the skin below his right eye and sticks out his tongue. “Just kidding. Of course, I did. But only for three hours. The book you gave me is great. I might finish it tomorrow.”

“What if I let you out later? Are you gonna continue reading it?”

“Of course not!” The knife thrower attempts to sidestep Jaehyun, only for a leg to block his way and he trips, kissing the floor. “Ow!”

“That’s what you get for doing what I said you shouldn’t do.” Wanting to finish cooking the soonest, Jaehyun drags his husband back into the room and quickly locks it, ignoring the loud poundings and complaints.

It happens again during lunch. Taeyong tries to slip out but Jaehyun grabs his face, shoves it back in the room and points to the tray of food. “Be a good boy and eat!” He locks it again when the older moves to claw at him, shouting about never being the good boy, ever.

The noise only dies down when dusk hits, the sun sojourning for a good night’s rest. Jaehyun sits at the hallway once again, back to the door of the practice room with a computer on his lap, fingers typing away.

Taeyong licks his thumb and turns the page of the novel he’s reading. Julie Garwood’s _Killjoy_ is about an FBI crime analyst solving a case that involves the murder of her aunt. The story hits close to home because one of the antagonists, Jilly Delaney, is a sociopath.

The knife thrower instantly recognizes the signs and it’s what gets him sold.

A harsh press to the keys takes him out of the fictional world he’s living. Taeyong’s head turns and he knocks on the door with his bandaged knuckle. “Hey, I hear some angry clacking. Are you working?”

“Yes,” Jaehyun sighs and scrolls the screen up and down, checking for any mistake. “I’m talking to the Japanese clients.”

“Ah… What are they saying?”

“Well, we need to supply the _good_ ASAP. No one’s holding an auction until the 3rd week so we gotta compensate.”

“Don’t they know that? Auctions are held every month. It’s not like the ladies and gentlemen appear on the regular at the same places. The earth has ears, news has wings. It travels faster than the speed of light. People love tragic rumors.”

“That’s what I’m saying.” Jaehyun hits send and closes his laptop. “We need to target new places. But it seems like they’re willing to pay more if we are able to deliver them on the date they’re asking. Garnet is having problems trying to hit the estimated date and my partner has other engagements like I do.” Not wishing to deal with the problem at the moment, the first kingpin puts the laptop on the floor and faces the door of Taeyong’s practice room. “Do you want me to go to Red Phoenix?”

Taeyong goes back to his book. “No need. I informed one of ‘em that I won’t be able to go.”

“As if you do actual work when you do go there.” Jaehyun teases. “I know you just sit and boss people around.”

Although it’s a joke, Jaehyun still wants Taeyong to take the job seriously. Red Phoenix was initially planned to be run by both he and Taeyong as announced in one of Fort’s galas, but later on the full control was given to the latter. Moreover, the casino is not registered under Invictus. It is completely owned by Taeyong and Taeyong only – which probably pushed the knife thrower to run it however he wants, visit it whenever he wants.

“At least they see me whenever they can. It’s not my problem they can work without supervision. I just check if I want to.”

“That’s how you messed with the parcels you were talking about before. The delayed ones? Did you actually mix them up?”

“Eh, I’m not sure. Maybe, maybe not. The only news I got was that there was some delay because a package meant for Korea went to China, same with the others. And then it was fixed before I could sink it in. Did you not check it?”

Jaehyun rolls his eyes. “I told you, we were too busy to check the French HQ’s records. Even if our systems are connected, any issue with the headquarters here is only sent here. Plus, Invictus has you, so what was the point of concerning myself with your job?”

“Okay okay, I understand. I really didn’t know. What’s important is it’s all good.”

“Exactly.”

“How come you’re here? We got other businesses. See our employees, would you?”

“I called the office this morning and I was not needed. If something arises, I’m a click away.”

Taeyong stops reading. He folds the corner of the page he’s in and closes the book before getting on his knees, facing the door and tapping on it. “Let me do something, Jaehyun. Let me out.”

He continues begging the younger to release him but Jaehyun only gets back to work, doing his hardest to ignore the rhythmic thumping in the background.

Until it stops and he doesn’t notice right away. Only when his stomach grumbles does he pick up on the unusual silence from inside the practice room and heads to the kitchen to make a quick dinner.

Keys jingle, alerting Taeyong from his state of coma on the couch. With light steps he pads over just as the door opens wide enough for Jaehyun to push the bowl in, as well as a bottle of water.

“Not gonna try to flee?”

Taeyong puts the bowl between his legs and mixes his food well using the chopsticks, head bowed and sight slightly hindered by the long fringe. Blowing it away, he stabs an egg and feeds himself. “Nope. Not feeling it.”

After eating, Jaehyun goes to wash the dishes and returns to his semi-permanent place in front of the locked door of the practice room. “Wanna watch a movie?”

“Okay.”

He leaves the door slightly ajar and coils the chain around the lamp bolted to the wall. Through the small space, Taeyong watches an action movie on Jaehyun’s computer. They don’t talk for the whole duration of it, only making comments here and there but remaining focused on the film.

As the ending credits roll, Taeyong grips the side of the door to keep it open and looks at the younger. “Oi, dimple boy.”

“Mm?”

“Why didn’t you tell Léonie I went full crazy because I saw my sister?”

“Would that help? She is her daughter. She could be missing her too, blaming herself for not being able to protect her. And for not being with her for the last time. What good would it do? You won’t understand, and I too, but they say a mother and daughter’s bond is something special no other would get.” Jaehyun keeps his eyes on the credits. “It’s nice that you have someone to deal with your shit, but what about your mother? She has no one to lean on.”

“I appreciate the kinda subliminal message there attacking me.” Taeyong jokes while staring at his husband’s side profile. He gets quiet then as he is struck with the sudden will to _express_ a gnawing thought, trying to make sense of a wide variety of them swimming in his mind all at once.

The sentences jumble, his mind not having settled on a main point just yet. When their eyes meet, he feels a strong pulsing on the throat and takes it a sign to go for it, to spill whatever he can.

_You’ll make a point eventually._

And as if Jaehyun possesses the power of Telepathy, he looks at Taeyong, sensing the incoming seriousness. “You wanna talk. Do it.”

So Taeyong does and lets his mouth run without a stop.

“Locking me up is dumb but I think I needed it. Being alone again feels familiar. It’s nostalgic, like I missed my old life. I was literally born in this kind of world locked up in a dungeon, you know.” He smiles but his eyes aren’t happy. “Have I told you? How they tortured me until all I knew was either pain or nothing at all? Jaehyun, you should’ve seen me get shackled to the wall with my face swollen, ankle sprained…you know how I got my spine tattoo? They cut me down to see how much I could tolerate ‘til I passed out. I had the scar covered so everytime I look at it, it’d look awesome. They even made me swallow a microchip to check if it could be detected when ingested. But it failed so I had to shove a finger down my throat to puke it out. It was so hard but that was my life. Weird that I crave the solitude now, though.”

Jaehyun’s hands makes it way for the other’s, holds it and gives it a squeeze.

“I didn’t know I needed to get away from everything. The trip drained me. When I want to just be with myself, help me alright? I don’t wanna stay in our room or make you leave. This is the only room that has _me_ in every corner. Since we got married, you left a trace in the whole house except this room. Because you can’t practice shooting here. So when the time comes that I wish to be alone, you can do this again. Lock me up.”

The younger nods, giving the knife thrower’s hand a quick kiss. “I promise. You wanna watch another movie?”

“Okay, but let my hand go, disgusting wench. My pick!” He shouts, arm shooting out to press keys on Jaehyun’s laptop. He ends up playing a horror film, ignoring the younger’s glare. “Get me a salad.”

“Salad? Wow, this is how I know the whole reflection thing is working.”

“Don’t get your hopes up! I will have my diabetes diet when I get out of here.”

“You said you want to open _La Montée Dorée_ branches here?” Jaehyun asks Fort, fearing he heard wrong.

The lobby of the residential building is well-lit at this time, nearing 8 in the evening. All the other seats are vacant, and the only person around is the receptionist. A few residents appear dressed for an occasion, exiting the building.

Fort nods, mindlessly fiddling with the button of his suit. “Yes. An ocular inspection today was necessary for the lots to be bought. The meeting with the owner ended quiet early so I thought, why not drop by?” The Garnet leader frowns. “I didn’t come in a bad time, did I?

Jaehyun is quick to pacify the other. “Not really.”

“I’ll have your word for it.”

“So, what do you have to do? You have a target date?”

Fort’s eyes dart to the side, unseeing as he gathers his thoughts. “For now, requirements need to be handed in to the municipal office. But I’m moving that to a later date since the plan is to open two branches this year, and I still haven’t decided where to open the second branch in Aquitaine.” He looks back at the kingpin of Invictus, now hopeful. “Which town do you think would be best to check?”

A rub on his nape means he’s embarrassed. Actually, Jaehyun doesn’t have any idea. “To be honest, I haven’t had the time to go around Aquitaine. Bordeaux is a lot already for my schedule.”

“I feel for you.” Fort sighs, and the evidence of fatigue shows on his features. “Paris itself is too much for someone. The heart of the city looks like it has everything but the suburbs can offer you more. I guess I have to talk to Max to fix my schedule and see if I can have another ocular inspection.”

“You look extremely busy.”

“I am. I’m flying to America for another meeting. What about you? Going anywhere?”

Jaehyun shakes his head. “This is the freest I’ve been ever since. The only worry right now is the Japanese customers. But you just mail them too, right?”

“Of course. Only superhumans have no problems flying here and there and not die from exhaustion. The Japanese are getting demanding.” Fort sighs once again, looking at Jaehyun before quickly scanning the area. “Where’s Taeyong?”

At the mention of his husband’s name, Jaehyun sits properly, back straight. He isn’t sure why but it suddenly feels like he’s being put on the hot seat. “Uh, I know private matters shouldn’t be disclosed but long story short, he’s not allowed to go anywhere. Not even here. You can think of this as me trying to instill some discipline in him.”

Fort stares with a slightly amused face. “He’s not allowed to go anywhere. So basically he’s grounded. At the age of 30.”

Jaehyun blushes.

The Garnet kingpin waves his hand dismissively. “Pardon me, I don’t have the right to judge. You didn’t lock him anywhere, did you?”

The awkwardness vanishes, replaced by a bout of jealousy. Jaehyun distractedly twists his wedding ring. “I know you care about him since he’s technically a Garnet member but…I’m only doing this because I know it will help.”

_Why am I even explaining myself to Jung Yunho? It’s not like’s anyone significant to Taeyong._

The green monster rejoices.

The visitor looks apologetic, at least, as he lowers his gaze and clears his throat. “Why did I even ask such a question; it’s not like I have no prisoners of my own.”

To call his husband a prisoner in his own home definitely feels off. “What do you mean?”

“All of us have enemies, and I’m pretty sure Invictus keeps tabs on them. Garnet has a fair share of it, probably more and likewise, we have a place for those who have the guts not to behave properly.”

Even as Jung Yunho pertains to a completely different set of people, Jaehyun can’t help but feel guilty.

“It is a must, or else they’d think they’re free to challenge us without repercussions.”

“So if Ethan can’t go out, I suppose he has no choice but to interact with the children.”

“Actually, they’re not here.”

Curiosity eclipses the apologetic look on Fort’s face. Jaehyun nods.

“We asked someone to take care of them first ‘because Taeyong is unpredictable, you know. So unpredictable we had to cut the Disneyland trip short.”

“Why?”

Jaehyun shrugs. “It’s related to why Taeyong can’t go out…and the shooting. You head about that, right?”

“That, I did. What a cruel thing to do. Children shouldn’t be involved in such problems, to the likes of which we both know.” A small smile finally graces Yunho’s profile. “Unless it’s beneficial to all parties.”

A sudden thought propels an inquiry from the Invictus kingpin. “Speaking of children. Do you have siblings? Do you plan to marry? I hope you don’t mind these questions…”

Fort laughs, voice rich and attractive. “I don’t mind. I’m an only child. Father, the previous kingpin is staying outside the country. My mother died a long time ago. For so many years, it is just me. Marrying for companionship didn’t really cross my mind. I should probably start thinking of settling down, huh?”

It’s the first time he’s heard of the Garnet leader’s family and it’s oddly nice to know they have the same situation – an only child, no mother, absent father. Though it’s not very ideal.

“What about Dr. Kim? Aren’t you two like–”

Yunho speaks over him. “That, I do mind.”

Oh how stupid of Jaehyun to ask a very private thing when he made the other apologize for the same mistake. God forbid Fort from letting it affect their professional relationship. At least, Fort isn’t offended. Or is he?

Before he can think of saying sorry, Fort is already standing up and fixing his suit. “I should go. I’m already stalling.”

Jaehyun stands as well out of respect for the man who helped his group get into _Le Milieu_. “Is your assistant with you?”

“Yes, he’s waiting outside.” Fort nods at him and taps his shoulder once. “Wishing you luck with your own family.”

“Thank you…”

Jaehyun stays where he is, eyes following the other’s figure as it leaves the residential building. Max opens the door for his kingpin and quickly gets in the driver’s seat of the white _Jaguar_.

He checks the time and hurries back to the penthouse, breathing in its air of comfort, of _home_. It is time to have dinner – the third time with Taeyong being locked up. What should he make to–

“Finally!”

Jaehyun’s scream competes with the deafening sound of the practice room door hitting the floor, completely unhinged. With a hand on his chest to feel his palpitating heart, he closes his eyes and composes himself – thirty seconds, a minute – before opening his eyes again when he thinks he’s ready to face Taeyong innocently holding a gun and stepping over the broken door.

“Taeyong, what the actual fuck?”

“Fear not, I used a silencer so the building will not detect any unusual activity. You weren’t answering my desperate cries of hunger! And I figured out I’m already fine, I know my mistakes and I’m done with putting myself in seclusion–”

“After all that drama yesterday?!”

“Why, yes!” Taeyong heads back inside to hide the gun in the connecting storage room.

Jaehyun mumbles profanities as he stares at Taeyong’s work. “You should’ve waited for me! You didn’t have to gun it down…”

“My patience ran out like drying oasis. Don’t look at it; I’ll call someone to get it fixed. Where were you?” The knife thrower walks over the door again, his weight creating more damage as it cracks.

Jaehyun is too busy feeling bad for the inanimate object’s untimely demise to see the _hunger_ in his husband’s eyes – and not the kind he’s expecting. “Fort was here. He’s going to open two restaurant branches so he inspected spaces.”

The sound of a lighter’s click pulls Jaehyun’s out of trance. A cigarette is pinched between Taeyong’s lips, already lit and its smoke forms a distorted shape that breaks when Taeyong steps closer, features sharper than ever. Something about him at the moment looks different.

 _Ah,_ the half ponytail.

Why must this man torment Jaehyun this way?

“That guy sure has a lot of time.”

“A-actually, he left because he has a meeting to attend…in The States.”

And why the fuck is he stuttering?!

Taeyong only takes a break from inhaling the cancer stick to discard his top, carelessly tossing it behind. Jaehyun is suddenly bombarded with a plethora of tattoos.

“Mm… You must be very special to be given some of his time.”

“What are you doing?” He croaks out, inwardly cursing how his voice sounded shaky. Jaehyun knows perfectly what his husband is doing. And it’s doing him so good, albeit painfully.

He already has a hard on just by watching Taeyong strip.

“Didn’t I tell you that once I’m out of that room…”

The sharpshooter’s breath hitches, giving him away.

Taeyong’s eyes darken. When he flicks the ash off the cigarette, he smiles – and this time, it reaches his eyes.

“You didn’t mark my words. A good boy does not dismiss his master. Clearly, you need some _reflection._ ”

Jaehyun steps out of the bathroom, still dressed. He’s supposed to be naked by now after cleaning himself, maybe with a towel wrapped low around his waist but due to nervousness, he put everything back on, only realizing how dumb it is when he sees what’s waiting for him in bed. 

Deep laughter rings in the air as Taeyong looks him up and down before putting his cigarette in the ashtray. “I won’t ask anymore; you did the same thing the first time you bottomed.” 

Not sure what it is, but the sultriness of Taeyong's tone blended with the natural roughness of his voice makes the hairs on Jaehyun's body raise in excitement and anticipation. Submission was never his thing until Taeyong happened, and he had only bottomed once, scared to be addicted to it hence he never tried it again, but the fear of getting used to it cannot be found at the moment. The want and the need to feel that cock inside of him is taking over. Shamelessly. 

Without further ado he climbs in bed, lips immediately seeking Taeyong's. It's not slow, it's not sweet. It's hungry and it's _dirty._ Taeyong tugs him in between his open legs, hands gripping the younger's sides to pull him close. Their cocks, both hard and begging for friction, grinding against each other, desperate for the long-awaited, much needed pleasurable release. Cold fingers crawl beneath Jaehyun's thin shirt, tracing unrecognized patterns over his chest, grazing his sensitive nipples before mapping down his stomach and dancing over his flank again. 

His own hands roam all over Taeyong, wherever they can reach before one grabs a handful of the older’s hair. 

A low moan tears out of Taeyong's throat when Jaehyun yanks, severing their lip-lock as well as the thin string of spit connecting their mouths. Not a second later, an eager mouth latches on his throat, right on his Adam's apple to suck, lick and bite and kiss. Tomorrow, he's going to sport a number of faint bruises. That, he's sure of. 

“You're getting better at this,” Taeyong comments, one of his hands slipping past Jaehyun's boxers to grip the base of the younger's cock. The length throbs in his hand when he starts to stroke, the pumps slippery thanks to the oozing precum. Even though he doesn't see it, Taeyong knows it's leaking terribly.

And it’s all because of him, for _him._

Jaehyun only hums next to his ear before biting the lobe. “Thanks to the practice, I guess.” Teasing back, he pulls away just to remove all the hindrances of his body - the shirt and boxers fall on the floor, together with Taeyong's lower garments. 

They kiss once again, just as ferocious as before, with Taeyong being hell bent on biting his lower lip and licking through each nook and cranny of his mouth. Jaehyun groans, hips canting over Taeyong's while the latter sucks on his tongue like he didn't feed for days. If Jaehyun didn't know better, he'd think his husband wants to _swallow_ him whole. But that can't be, because who's gonna fuck Taeyong when he's gone? 

Quiet, wet sounds of kissing echo through the silence of their room, as well the occasional dirty talk here and there. 

“I wonder,” Taeyong begins, voice even deeper now as a hand of his traipses the length of Jaehyun's spine before settling over a healthy mound, squeezing harshly. “Are you still just as tight? Grip of your ass vice-like around my cock, Jaehyun? I want to stick up there again.” Jaehyun's arms shake as his husband's lewd words continue to assault him. “Will you be good? Get on your knees and show your fuckhole to me?” 

Thin lips ghost over the shell of the younger kingpin's ear, blowing hot breath. “Do you want hyung to fuck you good, baby?” 

Embarrassingly, Jaehyun's breath hitches. The mental image of him on all fours, head turned to the side to watch Taeyong fuck him senseless fills his veins with intravenous ecstasy. It travels through his bloodstream, tingling and warm 'til they settle in the pit of stomach, spreading like deadly virus to every part of him. Deadly. Maybe Ethan really is going to be the inevitable death of him. 

With a glazed vision he gets into position even without an order. He knows it's where Taeyong wants him to be tonight - pathetically kneeling, gripping the sheets and sweating, drooling even because of the cock stretching him full, pounding his every nerve to completion. _Fuck._ When did he get this needy? 

His eyes are close, brows knitted. Jaehyun's cheek is pressed on the mattress, hands idle on either side of his head. They wait for an instruction where to be, what to do, how to do it. Taeyong has absolute control tonight and Jaehyun wants everything from it, wants nothing but to be Ethan's little bitch for the second time. 

He feels the shuffling behind and hears the sound of the drawer opening, some rummaging, and the drawer closing. Jaehyun's eyes open at the sound of jangling metal, and he jolts up the second one of his wrists gets cuffed to the headboard. 

Still kneeling, but now looking at Taeyong fully, Jaehyun glares over his shoulder as though doing that harder would magically free his hand. “Seriously…?”

“Seriously,” Taeyong reaches for the lit cigarette on the ashtray and puffs out the cloud of smoke through the corner of his mouth, cock standing and curved towards his belly before he playfully grabs and slaps it on Jaehyun's crack. “Don’t worry,” he inhales a lungful of the cancerous stick, moaning at the taste of his old solace as his body welcomes it back like a long-lost other half. “I won't do the same to your other hand. But if I do...” Drawling, Taeyong pinches the stick with his teeth and drags Jaehyun close, sliding his cock up and down between the younger's globes. “You're going to like it and thank me, aren't you? Sweet Jaehyun, my husband,” Taeyong leans over, chest pressed against the other's back. “Pretentiously righteous lover, you're going to cry and moan out my name and _beg_ me to wrap you in all kinds of sins.”

“Yes, fuck,” Jaehyun rasps, forgetting the outside world. The feel of Taeyong's thick cock between his ass is so enticing, _tantalizing,_ so much that he pushes back, gripping the sheets. It hasn't even started yet but his heart is already lodged in his throat, loud beatings residing in his ears. 

Taeyong inhales the cigarette a few more, his throat hollowing before he flicks the ash over Jaehyun's fair back, the tiny blaze shines as Taeyong taps it over his own hand. It doesn't hurt; It'll take a lot more than that to inflict him a little amount of pain. 

“Stay that way for a bit.”

The warmth on his back disappears. Taeyong coats his fingers with cold lube, inserting them one at a time to loosen Jaehyun. They get on it until Taeyong deems the younger prepped enough for him. The liquid coats his cock then, Taeyong hissing when the air from the AC hits it. 

When he points the angry red tip over Jaehyun's pucker, the younger is already panting, eyes a hazy film as they meet his clear ones. “You gotta be quiet, you know. If you don't wanna wake the neighbors.”

“No one’s gonna hear me- _shit_.”

The slow yet smooth slide of Taeyong's cock, breaching past his opening and dragging along his walls cuts him off. It could've been gentler, Taeyong could've done even better but Jaehyun prefers the slight sting on his bottom, even more when Taeyong bottoms out, burying all of him in Jaehyun's ass. 

“God, look at you. No, you can't look of fucking course, how dumb of me. But damn,” Taeyong chuckles as he moves his hips into small circles, enjoying the little whimpers coming from his husband. “You look like _me,_ Jaehyun. An exclusive _whore_. Exclusive,” A hand caresses one of his ass cheeks. “Because you're mine. You get that, right?” 

“Y-yeah…” Jaehyun lets out a huff. He just wants that good ass pounding _now._

The desperation must be obvious because the knife thrower chuckles, the cig back between Taeyong's lips and without much of a warning, he starts _fucking._

Jaehyun is reduced to a whimpering mess, his moans and grunts muffled against the thick comforter as Taeyong rams his cock mercilessly, hands gripping Jaehyun's waist painfully yet it feels _so good,_ so fulfilling, that with _that_ alone Jaehyun knows he will _come._

“Good, yeah?” Taeyong asks amidst the loud slaps of skin, still filling his lungs with nicotine. Blue eyes rake over the expanse of his husband's back 'til they land on the bouncy pair of cheeks, and the push and pull of his wet cock. Jaehyun can't do anything but take, take and take, because tonight he's just a doll for Ethan to enjoy. “Won’t be a bad boy again? Are you reflecting well?” 

“Mm… _Aah_ , fuck. More, hyung.” His hair is stuck on his forehead, a thin sheen of sweat forming on his skin. Jaehyun spreads his legs wider, an invitation for the other to thrust impossibly harder, deeper. 

That Taeyong accepts. He indulges Jaehyun with more, hips angling a bit so that he's hitting that spot dead on. And the moans coming from the man kneeling before him grow louder that Taeyong is left with no choice but to drag him up by his free arm and cover his mouth. 

“Fucker, I told you to fucking keep it down.” Taeyong's jaw clenches before a groan escapes him as Jaehyun clamps around him. “Bite down that tongue or I'll chop it and hang it on the living room like a fucking mistletoe, Jaehyun. Merry fucking Christmas in advance.” 

“No one’s g-gonna- _fuck!_ hear me-” It comes out muffled, barely decipherable.

“Be a good boy and listen to me.” 

“H-hyung, Taeyong hyung…” Jaehyun mumbles behind the palm, his saliva painting it. It wasn't like this the first time - it was nice and slow and almost _romantic_ , now it's wild and salacious and explicit. It strips him of the dominance he usually has, the air of authority he wears on the daily. Yet he _loves_ it, doesn't mind to be degraded. 

He calls for his husband, even mentions the name that he knows would excite Taeyong, but instead of giving him what he wants, Taeyong stops. He just stops, frozen, paralyzed. Jaehyun cock his head to get away from the hand covering his mouth before checking what's up with the older. He's already feeling the pooling warmth in his belly. He would _loathe_ to delay it. 

“Ethan…”

Hard, incomprehensible eyes stare right back at him. Chills run down his body as the icy glare runs over the heat licking on the entirety of his form. 

“Fuck yourself on my cock.” Taeyong holds the cigarette and sits on his heels next to him, resting against the headboard. His arms drape over it as he keeps the eye contact, his cock twitching at the sight of the debauched man. 

Jaehyun's heart stops. Did Taeyong just tell him what he thinks he told him? 

“I can hear you loud ass thoughts, Jaehyun. Fuck yourself on my cock or you're not cumming anytime soon.” Taeyong threatens, blowing out gray smoke. “You know I can go on for the rest of the night.” 

“Damn it.”

“Go on.”

Knowing he's got no choice but to comply, Jaehyun asks to be freed and soon faces the other side, forehead glued on the mattress as he slowly sinks down, sighing inaudibly before he fucks himself on Taeyong's dick, pushing to and fro as much as he can to please the older. He hears the appreciative hum and feels the loving caress on his back and Jaehyun picks up his pace, doing the most as he teasingly tightens around Taeyong, slowing down and fastening his movements again, alternating. He knows the effect he has on Taeyong, he knows Taeyong is about to crumble if the slight roll of hips and frequent moans are anything to go by. So he makes sure that they're both going to hit the peak by doing what he knows best. 

“Ethan… Ethan hyung…” Jaehyun moans, calls his husband's name like a mantra while he sinks down the older's cock for the nth time. 

“Fucking…” Taeyong tosses the cigarette and wraps his arms around Jaehyun's middle as he takes over, hitting the younger's spot with every single thrust. He doesn't give a fuck anymore that Jaehyun forgot about being quiet because he just wants to push him over the edge now, to give him that mind numbing pleasure that he deserves after the stress caused by their trip. The walls around his cock tighten and it's getting harder to move but Taeyong continues going at it, pinching Jaehyun's nipple and stroking his cock all at the same time. 

“You feel so fucking _good_ , Jae. So fucking good for me...” Taeyong whispers, mouth pressing kisses down the side of Jaehyun's neck and along his shoulder blade. A low cry resonates in the room as Jaehyun's body is racked with tremors, his cock spurts white over the sheets. Taeyong bites down his shoulder so hard the skin breaks and it bleeds, the iron taste spreading over his famished taste buds. The redness spills on his tongue and Taeyong laps over the wound until the bleeding lessens, just as he fills Jaehyun with his load, his hips stuttering to a halt. 

The younger's arms give out and they fall to a heap, fortunately avoiding the sticky mess. Jaehyun is still delirious with pleasure, twitching and mumbling incoherence as Taeyong catches his breath over the younger's damp nape. 

A minute or two has gone by when the knife thrower pulls out carefully. Jaehyun bites back the wince as he squirms, suddenly hating the feel of stickiness running down his thighs and oozing out of his ass. 

“Wanna take a shower?”

Jaehyun stares at the ceiling in a blissful daze. “I need it. God, we need it.” 

  
  
  
  
  
They stand under the shower with Taeyong helping to scoop the cum out of Jaehyun's ass with his fingers. It's utterly embarrassing, but it needs to be done. Jaehyun puts his leg down from being perched atop the toilet lid and almost loses his balance, saved by Taeyong's fast reflex. 

“You feeling better now?” 

“Mhm.”

Taeyong presses a kiss to his bruising shoulder. “Good. I'll shower now so get out of here if you’re done.” 

A silly thank you is what Jaehyun gives him before the silence befalls them. He jerks a little when he remembers the cigarette, glad that Taeyong doesn't reek of it. “Don't chain smoke, Taeyong. Once a week. That's all I'm allowing you.”

A taunting smirk settles on Taeyong's face. “Got it, dimple boy.”

An eye roll later, Jaehyun dries himself and slightly limps out in an embroidered black and gold bathrobe, wet hair slicked back. He removes the bed sheet and throws a fresh one on the mattress; Taeyong can fix it when he finishes showering. Sitting kind of hurts, but he knows it will feel better tomorrow. If it doesn’t, he hopes there’s an available set of crutches lying around the storage room as prop for his acting debut. 

Because telling everyone he stepped on a banana peel and slipped is far better than letting them discover he enjoys getting drilled - quite pleasurably. 

Granted that the penthouse is five times bigger than this, the new place they’re staying at is still far better because it’s cozy, the walls are pastel in color, there are lots of plants and though Jaehyun is nice, Léonie knows exactly what kids want without having to ask.

They’re on their fourth day of being with Léonie and Haechan is starting to think of how to tell Jaehyun that he might just be with the very kind lady from now on. Suddenly, separating with his sister seems to be negotiable.

“Léonie, Léonie!” Haera calls with a big smile, leaving her crayons on the floor to go bother the woman cooking their lunch. “I finally finished coloring the peacock! It was so hard and there it’s not perfect but I think it’s pretty!” Her pigtails bounce with her.

The woman tells her to wait, chuckling at the eagerness of the little girl. She’s a handful, not really able to stay still for a long time and will always find something to talk about and do. Meanwhile, the boy is her complete opposite. Their faces could be their only common trait.

Léonie turns off the stove and sets the table before going to see her work of art. Since she doesn’t have children’s toys in her house and Jaehyun didn’t put theirs in the luggage, she could only let them use her adult coloring book. The images are more complex but it sure improves their concentration.

“This looks great,” she picks it up and lets her blurry gaze run on every inch of the finished art, wanting to appreciate every second of hard work Haera put through. “You did better than me.”

“Really?” Haera’s hands clasp together in glee before snatching Haechan’s undone work to show it to Léonie. “Give him a score!”

“I’m not done yet!” Haechan protests but doesn’t take his paper from the woman who quickly nods her head with a look of approval before handing it back to him.

Léonie smiles but it looks strained and rubs her chest as though alleviating pain.

“You are doing well. Next time, I’ll give you more pictures to color. It’s a shame I’ve run out of it…” She sighs and gestures for them to follow her to the dining area. They all take their seats and soon start to eat.

Haechan chomps down a broccoli and looks at Léonie. “When you said next time, does it mean we will see you again? I like it better here!”

His statement makes his twin sister pout and stab her vegetable, legs swinging. “You can stay here.” She quickly looks at Léonie, her eyes wide. “I like you! You’re so nice like Jaehyun and your house is smaller and it makes us feel like we’re not gonna get lost. But I want to continue getting more lessons from Taeyong.”

“Lessons?” Léonie asks, curious about what Haera is talking about.

“Yeah! Taeyong has a lot of knives and arrows! But- but- he didn’t let us touch the real ones.” She adds that last sentence when Léonie’s eyes widen in alarm at the thought of her son carelessly giving the kids weapons. “It looks cool… Even if I can’t hold the real ones, I can just watch him practice!”

Léonie coughs to the inside of her elbow and momentarily closes her eyes when her vision seems to spin again, and then looking at Haera when it turns back to normal. “Does he spend time with you?”

Haera shakes her head and tells Léonie that Taeyong doesn’t, that he’s either rude to them acts like they don’t exist.

“I think he only showed us his hobbies because he wanted to show off.”

Haechan giggles at what Haera said.

Léonie pushes her food around as she thinks about her son. She hopes the bruise on his face has gone down and that his knuckles have healed. Whatever caused those injuries to find themselves there, in places they shouldn’t be, she hopes it’s nothing serious.

“So…do you two like Jaehyun and Taeyong?”

The twins share a look before nodding, though Haechan denies liking Taeyong. In his defense, he doesn’t dislike him, but he’s not comfortable with the man as well because Taeyong scares him.

Léonie puts her spoon and fork down, rubbing her chest again. “Taeyong is my son.”

“Oops.” Haera glances at Haechan.

“I’m not mad at you, Haechan, for telling me that. I know how he is. He is indeed scary, and he has this detestable way of talking, some odd mannerisms here and there. But he’s so much better now, I’ll have you two know. Whatever he showed you, if he was rude, if he was a little physical with Jaehyun, he was so much worse years ago. And I believe you two wouldn’t have survived if you witnessed that phase. Now he has Jaehyun, he has no reasons to be scarier than he currently is. I hope he finds no reason to unleash what needs not to be freed.

Someone like Taeyong cannot be excused. His actions are done on purpose without care for the feelings of others, unless you are someone like Jaehyun in his life. Jaehyun is a whole different case. Bottom line is, Taeyong will not care about anyone else except for Jaehyun. But you, both of you are innocent angels, and I know he will never harm you. There is nothing about you that will pose a threat.”

She smiles as she pauses, gathering the last bits of her thoughts. “You just need to discover your way around him if you want to be close to him, Haera. Such privilege was only given twice.”

The image of her daughter flashes quick before it disappears, leaving faint, emotional pain in its wake. Léonie shakes her head tells them to continue eating.

Lunch goes on peacefully. When everyone is done, Haechan volunteers piling the dishes in the sink and then the twins are back to the living room, now occupied with a cartoon on TV.

Until the sounds of plates clanging is roughly broken by the sound of them dropping and shattering in pieces, together with Léonie’s unconscious body hitting the floor.

Haera rushes towards her, shouting her name but she doesn’t open her eyes. The girl starts sniffling at the sight of blood on the lady’s mouth and orders Haechan to find Léonie’s phone.

Once the boy has gotten ahold of it, the device thankfully unlocked, he quickly presses speed dial 1, saved as _Ethan_. Whoever picks up should be trustworthy and reliable enough to be the first speed dial contact.

_I know you can help us! Please pick up!_

It rings twice before someone picks up and the greeting shakes the boy for a millisecond.

“ _Gremlins causing trouble? I know for sure that type of monster eats boogers for lunch. Make a wasabi out of it and slam Gordon, I don’t care._ ”

_Oh._

Haechan does a double take at the screen before shouting at it. “Léonie fainted and she’s bleeding! Please help us!”

“Why did Lisa have to take an off today? Girlie knows how to piss me off. She can always spill alcohol but she’s not allowed to leave me here alone!”

Jennie does not usually complain. See, she loves her job. Serving gamblers, perverts and heartbroken men and women may not be the best thing to do in the whole world but working in Red Phoenix pays quite well, lets her buy what her heart so desires. And, it’s not the experience is too unpleasant. When her boss literally encourages her to put disgusting men in a chokehold when they go overboard with their poor attempts at bedding her and dirtying her dignity just because she’s a woman, she supposes she doesn’t really mind.

Not all workplaces have a boss that promotes punching your customers in the throat because they are not always right.

But today, Jennie has all the rights in the world to complain because…who’s going to do the job if Lisa’s out and she wants to bother her co-workers?

“She’s gonna get it, I swear to God. I know where you live, Lisa. I know where you live.” She continues to be irritated while arranging the bottles in the shelf. The casino used to be open 24/7 but since Jeong Jaehyun arrived, it has turned to 20/7 with the 4 hours used for maintenance. They could cut it down to two, but his highness Lee Taeyong only hired a small team for that job. Talk about trust issues.

With the other bartender gone and the Black Room squad doing their own thing, Jennie is left with no one else to gossip with. It shows in the loud clinking of glasses in the cabinet as she carelessly puts them back after wiping them clean one by one.

“It doesn’t even help that my hot but sadly married boss is always occupied now to get his ass here!” She lets out a frustrated scream, startling a man mopping the floor several feet away. “Jeong Jaehyun, you’re bad news.”

Jennie places the last glass in the cabinet when her earpiece beeps once, and she goes rigid for a sec when Yukhei whispers _Code Red._

Code Red translates to suspicious figures.

She composes herself, lightly touching her row of hairclips before shooing the janitor away. Just as the man leaves, a small group of men enters the desolate club seemingly cautious while glancing around.

_Not regulars. They would know Red Phoenix has shortened hours._

She stays at the bar, picks up the cloth she was using to clean the glasses and pretends to be occupied with wiping the counter but keeping her hundred percent attention to the French men. When they spot her, she keeps doing what she does best – play obliviously seductive.

“Où est ton patron?” (“ _Where’s your boss?”_ ) One of them gruffly asks, stopping right in front of her.

 _Direct to the point, aren’t we?_ Jennie smiles, the kind that gets men on their knees and hands in their wallet. “Peut-on lui dire qui demande?” (“ _Could we tell him who’s asking?”)_

The man that asked Taeyong’s whereabouts tells no more, only pushing the flap of his jacket to the side for Jennie to see the gun on his hip, hoping she gets the message.

As she has faced similar situations before, she puts up an act of visible panic, stiffening for a moment before nodding with her eyes cast down. It always works. They always think they could scare her. Jennie steps out of the bar and signals them to follow her.

They walk down a dark hall. Jennie keeps a moderate pace, waiting for the right moment to strike.

“Are you his friends? If I remember correctly, he’s anticipating some people.” Jennie casually asks, giving away the fact she’s close with the boss, and that she definitely knows his secrets.

One of the men raises a brow. “What kind of people?”

“Oh,” Jennie coyly chuckles, pulling the hem of her skintight dress. “You know…his kind.” She slows down, painted finger scratching along the wall as she walks. “There might be some kind of problem, though.”

“Problem?” The men share a look. “What problem?”

Jennie Kim turns around, her hair following her movements while she plucks something out of her hairclip.

“I don’t think he wishes to meet _you._ ”

The needles glint under the single light right above her head before it hurls through the air, hitting two men on the neck, instantly paralyzing their bodies. They drop to the floor, still unconscious although they can’t move a single limb.

Realizing she has caught on to their intention, the three pull out their guns, aiming at her. Jennie only pouts. “You can’t shoot me. I am not a criminal.”

“You! What did you do to them!”

She approaches, hips swaying and covers one gun’s muzzle with a hand. “Witches don’t tell their spells.”

Before the man could react, Jennie knees her in between the legs and steals his gun, slamming the weapon against the other man’s head hard enough to make him lose focus. Rapidly, she dodges an incoming attack but gets shoved to the wall by the man who’s head she struck. Said man gets ahold of her, keeps her arms behind but Jennie’s leg shoots backward, the blunt tip of her heel digging against the man’s stomach.

In an instant she’s freed once again, stabbing a needle to an enemy’s neck and running back to the bar. The two of them catch up, shooting and missing the agile lady who grabs bottles and meets with them head-on, beating their heads. Jennie leaps over the counter and kicks their weapons out of reach.

Panting, the bartender blows her hair away from her face and presses on her earpiece. “Call Ethan and tell him to get his ass here right the fuck now. And give me a hand, you useless fucks!”

Jaehyun comes back from the cafeteria with some drinks, handing the kids theirs before lightly tapping Taeyong’s head with the cold soda can.

“They don’t have orange but lemon tastes good, too.” He takes his seat next to Taeyong beside Léonie’s hospital bed. She’s sleeping, been given the appropriate medicated and already checked-up. The doctor will return later to ask her questions.

Haera leans against the bed, arms pillowing her head as she watches the sleeping woman. “Why did she collapse?”

“Pulmonary Embolism.” Taeyong takes a sip of his soda and leans back, feet on the mattress. “I know it runs in her family’s blood. She would’ve been better now, only if she wasn’t a stubborn hag. All those medicine bottles are still fucking sealed. It’s like she’s asking to die.”

“Does she not want to get cured?” Haera asks again, her worried eyes now looking at the knife thrower.

Taeyong shrugs and takes a few more gulps of his soda before shoving it to Jaehyun. “It appears so. Let’s make a bet. Léonie’s going to rip that thin tube out of her hand when she wakes up later. Hospitals are the bane of her existence.”

Haechan shifts in his seat, clutching the coloring book. In his hurry to go, he randomly grabbed it thinking he could continue coloring. But he forgot to bring the crayons.

“What’s a P-pulmona...pulmo…?”

He squeaks, almost dropping the phone Taeyong tosses at him.

“Go Google it. Do I look like a doctor to you?”

“But you should know; she’s your mama!”

Taeyong grins as he stares at the little boy. “Looks like you got familiar with each other. Did she tell you about how she was a hands-on mother, sacrificial and unconditional? Fair and loving?”

“No...” Haechan frowns while trying to go through the phone. “She didn’t.”

“Of course, she didn’t. She has nothing to tell.”

He’s met with the girl’s squinting eyes, and a funny ‘ _I’m watching you’_ motion. “What.”

“She told us some other things. You were a rude son.”

Affronted, Taeyong unties his hair and flicks it against her cheek like a slingshot. Haera shrieks and cups her cheek before biting the hairband to show him she’s not one to be bullied.

“That’s true. I was and I am. That’s what everyone says. You can’t spell rudeness without T A E Y O N G. But that’s sooo unfair! Why didn’t she tell you both about how she was a bad mother, huh?”

Haera throws the bitten hairband at him. “How bad is bad? You said morals don’t exist!”

Jaehyun looks at his husband with _‘explain yourself’_ written all over his face. Taeyong just he-hes, snatching the soda can from Jaehyun’s hold. “I know what I told you, gremlin. But I’m also going to say whatever is convenient to me.”

“You’re so selfish!”

“Tell me more.”

The younger kingpin shakes his head at the two’s exchange and calls the little boy who’s got his face glued to the phone. “Haechan, you won’t understand it. It’s too complicated for you.”

“I’m not searching Pulmo anymore…”

“Then what are you doing?”

“Trying to see where Mister Scary’s name in the word rudeness is…”

Jaehyun pins Taeyong another look. This time, with a deliberate pinch to the knife thrower’s side.

“Motherfu–!”

The ringing of the phone stops him from cursing. Taeyong shoots out of his seat and grabs the gadget from the little boy’s hold, not even checking the caller anymore as the specific tone only means one thing: Emergency.

“What the fuck is it?”

Yukhei babbles from the other line. Soon as he gets the gist, Taeyong hangs up and pockets his phone. “Jaehyun, stay here. I’m going to Red Phoenix.”

Worry immediately hits Jaehyun. “Did something happen?”

“Just questionable people. Stay here. You don’t need to go with me.”

The younger wants to say he’s worried, that he should probably go as well but then the older has a point – whatever it is, he can deal with it alone. Jaehyun is only going to be in the sidelines. Besides, the casino is Lee Taeyong’s. He may have a few say in it, but Red Phoenix is Lee Taeyong’s. It’s the devil’s den hiding in plain sight.

Haera snickers as soon as the knife thrower leaves. “You look like a kicked puppy. Do you wish to go with him that much?”

She’s obviously teasing him. Jaehyun playfully sticks out his tongue. “Don’t make fun of me. You don’t know the things I can do.”

“Ohh, are you scary like Taeyong?”

“Of course! I’m just nice right now because you’re too small for me to fight.”

“Scary, you say…” The female gremlin reaches for Léonie’s hand and holds it, lightly squeezing. “I’d like to see it.”

There’s something in the way she said it that gets Jaehyun hoping he’s wrong. He hopes he’s wrong, that she’s only being mischievous. That the feeling that keeps on nudging him since the start is nothing but paranoia.

That she’s not another version of Lee Taeyong.

When he arrives, the whole building is close. All other staffs that are not involved with Invictus were sent home, as well as those that work for the shops in the building.

Taeyong takes the entrance at the back and heads straight to where Yukhei said the men are.

He’s greeted by scattered shards on the floor. They break into smaller, hazardous pieces beneath his weight. It’s the sound that takes all of their attention from the five men tied together. He has always slinked around his preys without them suspecting a thing – unless he makes them.

“What do we have here?”

“What is _thaaaat?_ ” Chanyeol points at their boss, eyeing his newly dyed hair in particular. “Are you attending a funeral?”

“Yes.” Everyone is taken aback. Taeyong pulls out his phone and goes to a roulette app to put all of their names in, waits for it to stop spinning before showing Chanyeol the result. “Would you look at that? It’s yours.”

Jennie swiftly chimes in. “You really missed the chance to say ‘I haven’t decided yet!’”

“But I have already decided.” Taeyong keeps the phone and finally regards the strangers’ presence with emanating, palpable peril. “Who the fuck are you and who gave you the right to step in my territory, huh?” He asks, nudging one of the men’s knees with his boot. “I’m not supposed to be here but because of you-”

“The leader is targeting you,” is the nameless man’s answer, glaring at Jennie momentarily though the state of his beat face fails to intimidate her. “He wants you gone.”

Taeyong crouches to their level and watches them try not to squirm before his steel gaze. “Leader. Leader of what.”

It takes them a few seconds before the reveal and it’s so unexpected that even Taeyong makes a soft noise of disbelief.

“The Corsican Mafia.”

The mention of the Corsican Mafia, an organization housing several crime groups in the Corsica Island makes Taeyong’s ability to think take a damn pause, because what the hell? The Corsican? They’re not even a part of it, never met anyone from it. How are they after him?

“Corsican. You’re telling me you got a memo from the Corsican leader to put one of your legs in an open grave by coming here, with such a small team. That’s what you are telling me.” The start of laughter slowly spills from the kingpin’s lips but it doesn’t continue to his usual mad cackling. “I get that you’re still joking amidst this mess when I can literally stab you in the face but. But look, you must have mistaken me for someone else. Never did I step foot in Corsica, nor did I offend your leader in any way. I have no business there.”

“The letter says so.”

The grin falls off of Taeyong’s face and his eyes lose that mirth, that spark, replaced by sinister darkness. “If you don’t spill the beans at once, I would be forced to behead you.”

He purposely ignores the way the men look away with some gulping in fear when it dawns on him how dangerous the situation is.

“Someone who claims that you have Andre Caron as hostage approached the Corsican leader. They want the man back.”

Rubbing his lower lip with a finger while also fiddling with his piercings, Taeyong weighs the words of this man. Andre Caron used to exist, when the bastard’s father borrowed money and was never seen again, so he served to be the collateral item that Invictus took straight from his home, right in front of his mother.

“Well, a part of that is true. But where the fuck is that letter you’re talking about? I’m only getting fragments from you.” The kingpin looks up. “Sungjong.”

Needing nothing else after the mention of his name, Sungjong begins to roughly search their clothes for the letter. He finds it in the still dizzy stranger that Jennie stabbed with her needle before handing it to their boss.

Taeyong wastes no time in opening the letter. He quickly scans through its content, absorbing the short but straight to the point message. At the end of it is the Corsican leader’s signature as well as the organization’s logo. “The Corsican wants to help someone get Andre Caron and eventually raid the casino, exposing further crimes that will incriminate its owner.” He folds the paper and slaps it across the bold pest. The man attempts to get up, but Chanyeol is quick to step over the man’s crotch, happy to inflict pain.

“Andre Caron, you motherfuckers, is some insignificant rat, nameless and poor. Besides, he’s already dead, all thanks to my trusted subordinate here who couldn’t stop peeling the bastard’s skin; he bled to death. That little shit. Why would Corsica fuck with me just because of a goddamn hostage of _mine,_ who had a huge debt to _me_? Who the hell is this person they’re helping, hm?”

“I got this from them as well.” Jennie tosses him a few police badges.

He scrutinizes the badges and knows they’re real, pocketing them. “So you’re from Paris police department. Did you verify this letter to your leader? Corsican Mafia has been traditional with their mails since it was established, am I right? Choosing to act like goddamn Harry Potter with all these secret letters.”

“There’s a signature of the leader and the organization’s logo. Only members are familiar with it. You don’t have the right to doubt its authenticity.” The beaten up man squirms, wiggling away from Chanyeol’s insistence to crush his balls. “We automatically work as long as we have that letter. No questions asked.”

“Is that so…” Taeyong stands up with the letter crumpled in his grip. “If that’s the case, then you must be from the Unione Corse.” The cops visibly stiffen, giving away their identity. “Unione Corse is the Corsican Mafia’s most prominent member – has vast control in the government. Didn’t you get curious as to why this letter was sent all the way to Paris and not the other cities? Why Paris? Your group originates in Marseille, which would make more sense.”

One of the cops sighs. “Like we’ve said, whatever is mentioned in the letter shall be honored and followed without questions.”

Before the knife thrower can spout his trademark epithets, Red Phoenix’s bartender slash needle-wielding witch as she calls herself, cringe fest and all, interrupts once again. She’s the only one who can openly disrespect Taeyong without getting her life risked. “How come there are only five of you though, if you come from this Unione Corse whatever? And not even uniformed? Are you making it look like you just randomly visited a casino on your off then stage something that would put Red Phoenix on a tight spot, leading you to what the casino’s hiding? That’s it, right?” She snaps her fingers, face smug. “I knew I had it in me to solve these mysteries.”

The lack of reaction wounds her ego so deep that she walks away from them to pour herself a glass of alcohol.

“They can’t be wearing their damn uniforms, Jennie – unless they want the innocent cops to interrogate them. They don’t even have a search warrant, which only means they intend to unveil our dirty business and sweep the operation under the rug. Which rooted from something so little that it makes me wonder why the Corsican is even entertaining it.”

Sungjong speaks, voice uncharacteristically soft for his job in Invictus. “But you’re not just anyone. They must know who you are.”

Taeyong tilts his head at the cops, struck with raw amusement at the men’s clueless faces. “You don’t know who I am, do you? The casino you’re in isn’t a petty crime den. Red Phoenix...does it ring a bell?”

Realization dawns so clearly on them that the kingpin giggles behind a closed hand. “Thought so! If you knew beforehand that Red Phoenix is owned by Ethan Lee, you would’ve brought a larger squad. And if you knew you’d be facing _me,_ you would’ve brought more than a handgun. Now I know why you wouldn’t ask the Corsican leader about this. The crime groups under that organization are known for attacking even the smallest figures. That’s so insulting, by the way.”

Yukhei then makes his contribution to the discussion by sharing what is possibly his dumbest insight to date. “It might be our fault because the sign doesn’t even say Red Phoenix. Just R.P. Also, you changed your hair color, boss! They didn’t recognize you, right?”

“Idiot! Keep your dumb comments to yourself before I make you.”

Jennie returns with her drink, face marked with disdain. “That’s what you get for hanging out with Chanyeol. If I were you, I’d hang out with Sungjong ‘cause honestly, he’s the only one productive out of the bunch. You wouldn’t choose to be with me; you can’t afford my company. Plus who put all these lanky Parisians down? Me.”

Chanyeol is still processing her indirect insult when Yukhei waves his hand dismissively. “Cut me some slack, Jennie. You didn’t give a signal, you know?”

“You knew they looked suspicious, you literally told me Code Red. But you didn’t even check. What were you doing?”

“Stop complaining! You took all of them down by yourself and we acknowledge your prowess. Happy now?”

“The bar is in hell when it comes to your combat skills anyway.”

The Paris cops’ eyes shift between the two as they go on with their squabble. Taeyong picks up one gun and shoots at the wall to stop their childish banters.

“I will staple your mouths if you don’t stop bickering, _sonnuva bitch._ ” When he fires a gun with that icy tone and blank gaze, they know it’s time to put a stop to whatever they’re doing. It’s dangerous – their boss won’t hesitate to put a bullet through their chests.

In the middle of Yukhei and Jennie’s banters, he’s been thinking. Just who is this person that wants Andre Caron out of the torture chamber that they would come to the Corsican leader, and the latter to lend a hand?

Memories of the Black Room squad trespassing in Caron’s house replay in his head. Andre was resisting, gagged to keep him from being too loud, while his mother weeps at the side before pouncing on the kingpin and assaulting him with a strike down his face.

He can still feel the sting from that intense slap.

Is Irina Caron that crazy to dare provoke him? Who is the woman to the Corsican?

Taeyong throws the gun aside. “If you don’t get anything done, will you get in trouble?”

“…Of course.”

“Oh, well. It can’t be helped. Get up. I’ll give you something to report to the Corsican leader. You understand that I won’t let you raid the casino and before you could even think of escaping, you’d already be dead, right?”

They don’t answer but he knows he got the message across.

“Then I’ll give you something to report. You,” he points to the one he’s often talked to. “You stay with me. The four of you go with my men.”

The four other cops begin to worry but the one staying with the kingpin only nods. “Do as he says.”

Taeyong signs at Sungjong, a code only the Black Room men know and then the four are being escorted to the end of the dark hallway, past the torture chamber. Jennie’s eyes light up when she’s hit with what’s about to take place.

The thick, steel door pulls up. The room it reveals is empty of anything, save for elevated seats on three sides, resembling a small, indoor arena. Yukhei and Chanyeol dump the four cops inside before disappearing to another door at the right side. Sungjong then takes it as a cue to press a button at the wall to for the steel door to roll down again.

“Come,” Taeyong pulls the remaining cop next to him and flips open the tiny lid on the door. “Watch. Don’t you dare blink. You need to report this to the Corsican leader.”

The cop peeks inside. At first, nothing is happening, just his colleagues standing clueless in the middle of the room. He tries to think of an explanation to this, to Ethan Lee’s agenda. However, he comes up with none.

His eyes are also beginning to feel dry, painful. If he so much as blinks once, he fears the consequence it might bring.

A minute more, and he’s already in the brink of risking it when another door opposite the entrance opens, preventing him from blinking, making him regret even thinking of his own pain.

Because right there, inside the room, are two large gray wolves now prowling towards the unlucky cops caged inside.

Panic rises in their chests and they scatter, trying to climb the seats but their screams and hasty movements provokes the beasts, prompting them to attack. One gets bitten on the leg, screaming and clawing on the ground as the wolf chews on his flesh. Two cops desperately bang on the steel door, their eyes filled with horror as the second wolf comes for their other comrade, chomping on his head. Blood spurts to the ground, the body convulsing as it tries to fight before it stops moving as life leaves it for good.

The sound of bones crushing beneath large canines causes them to feel more terrified. Pieces of human meat are now thrown all over as the wolves feast with unrestrained gusto.

Taeyong smiles at the sight of red, red, so much red. “Aren’t you lucky? It’s because you were the one who talked the most. That’s what they get for being timid. I’m not scary, am I?” The kingpin turns to the cop next to him and laughs. “Are those tears? Man, I don’t understand. What are you crying for?”

A loud bang shakes the steel door and Taeyong peeks to see the two other cops get dragged by the wolves, limbs soon ripped off of their torsos. “So gruesome. So brutal. Which cruel soul could think of such a way to kill? But then again, it’s not the wolves’ fault they are hungry. You present a full-course meal to a starving man…do you expect him not to take a bite? These wolves will be back in their cage and suffer until we find sufficient food. Where do you think Andre Caron ended up, hm?” He pats the cop’s shoulder before peeking back inside.

The wolves are still eating, devouring fresh human meat. Their mouths are now covered in the richness of blood, paws leaving traces of the attack on the once clean room. When they’re satisfied, Yukhei and Chanyeol lure them back inside the cage just in time as the steel door rolls up and the strong stench of blood permeates the air.

Taeyong walks in, leaving the paralyzed cop to pick up the crushed head by sticking his fingers through the now empty eye sockets. He drags it together with what’s left of the body, leaving red lines on the floor. When he reaches the remaining cop alive, he drops the head by the man’s feet. Blood coats the other’s shoe.

“You’ve worked hard today, good sir. Now go. Report to the Corsican leader and tell him he can come for me. I dare him to come for me.”

He watches as Sungjong leads the barely moving man out of Red Phoenix. To watch your colleagues be devoured mercilessly by beasts right in front of you, to watch them look into your eyes and ask for help you cannot give must be traumatic, one hell of a nightmare that will surely visit the man for the rest of his life.

_I know that the Corsican targeting me out of the blue must mean something. What it is, there’s only one way to find out._

_I hope Jaehyun is ready for another rollercoaster._

That night, after picking up Jaehyun and the twins from the hospital, Taeyong tells his husband what transpired in Red Phoenix.

“What?” Jaehyun whispers and glances at the kids to make sure they’re out of earshot. “We are being targeted by a huge organization? How come?”

“It’s still a bit unclear to me, even. For now, I made an impulsive but reasonable decision.” The knife thrower says, grabbing a fruit from the fridge. “I closed Red Phoenix.”

“What?!” This time, Jaehyun fails to be quiet. The twins look at them, silently asking, but he quickly tells them it’s nothing. “What about the shops? Your business?”

Taeyong bites down on a tomato and happily munches on it. “It’s only temporary ‘til I make sure no one’s going to be coming. The squad will still be there to watch over. Plus that’s a small financial strain; I won’t even notice.”

Jaehyun stares at him for a minute before nodding. “Alright. It’s your call anyway. You know what’s best for it. What are you going to do next, though? We can’t let this slide.”

“Damn right we won’t. Tomorrow, come with me. We can’t bring the gremlins so I’ll ask Jennie to stay here while we’re out.”

“Where are we going?”

The knife thrower sits down, still munching on the tomato with his head thrown back as his eyes battle the brightness of the kitchen light. “Somewhere. To get answers.”

They find the person that can give them answers in a suburb part of Bordeaux city – Begles. Taeyong parks the car at a far distance from the tenement that Irina Caron lives in. It has been quite some time since that day they took Andre from his home.

“There’s a guard.”

“He’s just there for decoration.” Taeyong pats Jaehyun’s shoulder and crosses the street, a hand in his pocket. Today, he’s wrapped in black from head to toe again. It’s a must to wear clothes that can hide blood stains especially when they have to be stained outside. His half-tied hair dances with the wind, only taming when he enters the tenement’s lobby.

As expected, the guard does not even bat an eye. Jaehyun merely follows the older up a flight of stairs, the handrails rusty and some steps damp.

“That’s the guard that let us in when we took the Caron son. Spewed out typical bullshit like just friends dropping by and he didn’t ask anymore, didn’t even see how batshit scared Andre was when he walked out of here.”

“If he tried to block your way, that still wouldn’t be a problem.”

“Of course. Be that as it may, things are still easier without having to get rid of extra baggage.” Taeyong leads the way down the 5th floor’s hall and stops at the last door. He warms his fist with a single huff before knocking thrice.

The door swings open later and the woman inside hasn’t gotten a word out of her mouth yet before the two men forces their way inside, unwelcome and unwanted. Jaehyun closes it with a soft click and there’s already a knife pressed on the woman’s pulse point when he turns around. 

“We meet again, Irina.”

Lower-class spells itself on the way this woman looks – old, worn out dress, graying hair, wrinkled skin. She’s not _that_ old, but the daily struggle of one without sufficient resources has turned her into someone dressed in borderline poverty.

Jaehyun glances around but there’s nothing much to see in a small box room comprising all the essential parts of a house. The window is broken, and there’s not even a curtain to keep it private. After all, Irina Caron literally has nothing valuable to hide.

She trembles like a leaf, angry and petrified. Her tired eyes are red and hard from lack of sleep, added with the repulsive presence of her son’s captor having the gall to show himself to her. “Why are you here!?”

Taeyong clicks his tongue and taps the blunt tip of the knife on her chin. “Don’t be afraid. I also humbly request you to keep your voice down as I’m not here to harm you. Let’s not attract the neighbor’s attention. See? My men are not here. Although I brought someone new.” Jaehyun gets tugged close. “This is Jeong Jaehyun, my husband. I hope you don’t mind me introducing him to you when you have none of your own.”

Barely distracted, she takes a step back and doesn’t get far as she hits a plastic chair behind her. “What are you doing here...”

The question makes him scoff. Pushing Jaehyun aside who chooses to stay near the door to watch, Taeyong pulls the chair close and sits down with his feet perched on the dining table nearby. “You should know why I’m here. After scheming with the Corsican mob leader, you’re pretending that you know nothing?”

Irina’s breath hitches and her eyes lose their previous courage. “I…I don’t know what that is!”

“Really?” Taeyong looks done. “Not at all?” He gets up and pulls the letter out of his back pocket before smacking her face with it, fully satisfied about finally getting his revenge. “Lying bitch. Pick that up and read it.”

With shaking hands, she does. Irina unfolds the paper and covers her mouth, glancing at the knife thrower before regaining her composure and regarding him with palpable hatred. She says nothing, only throwing the letter at Taeyong’s chest. Jaehyun moves to take it.

Taeyong stabs the knife down the table, right ankle over his left. “Don’t throw it away like that; I still need to use it. Anyway, it says there that you asked for their help to get your son. Trespassing in the casino was a way to expose us for taking him and eventually the other crimes. Who would’ve thought you had it in you to get back at me? How hypocritical of you, Mrs. Caron. You loathe me but sought support from someone even bigger than me.” He smiles, soullessly, and plucks the knife. “But guess what, they didn’t succeed in taking me down as I am still here, standing before you.”

As if all the courage she mustered is suddenly gone, Irina finally breaks down. The woman falls to her knees, sobbing her eyes out. “Please give me back my son! You cannot find his father anymore, please have mercy. It’s not his fault. _Please,_ I beg of you…”

Her heart-wrenching wails do nothing to Taeyong who’s set to spare her none of what she’s asking. “Plenty others have begged me for mercy but none was ever blessed. What makes you think that after all those months, I would change my mind?” He pushes her head away when she tries to cling to his leg. “Crying to me after that stunt will be fruitless. Andre Caron is dead.”

Irina gapes at him, her face wet with a fresh batch of tears. She looks broken beyond repair that Jaehyun almost feels bad. “W-what…”

Even the younger kingpin wants to ask the same question.

“Did I stutter? Have you gone deaf?” Taeyong keeps his knife and walks around, looking for something. He has almost flipped the whole room by the time he picks up an object from the floor, a thin wire, before roughly pulling her ear and begins to pick at it.

Jaehyun quickly holds her wrists, stuffing her mouth with a dirty rag. “Keep quiet. We don’t want to involve outsiders.”

“Oh, you got so much earwax.” The knife thrower says in disgust but continues to poke around her ear. “Is this how people like you live? You are so poor that you can’t afford to get it cleaned? Moving on,” he throws the wire out the window, “your son is dead. Like roughly two weeks ago? I gave my men the go signal to bring him to his end. Wanna know how?”

“I really thought he was still alive.” Jaehyun says. His husband literally shares nothing about what’s going on in Red Phoenix.

“There was no use keeping him if I can’t get my money back. Hey, Mrs. Caron. Ask me properly; I can’t understand you.”

She continues crying, shaking her head.

Taeyong shrugs and stands up, casually looking out the window. A few people are out doing their own business, unaware that someone nearby is suffering in the hands of mobsters. “You’re in no position to be disobedient right now, Irina. But I’ll tell you.” He looks at her sorry state with indifference. “Andre was fed to my wolves. I know, I know. It’s over the top but if it’s done plainly, then it’s not my doing. Awfully unreasonable. Who even keeps wild animals as pets? Don’t worry about my safety.”

He shifts next to Jaehyun and drapes an arm on the younger’s shoulder. “So stop bugging me for your son because he’s not returning. Or if you want, I could give you his remains. A toe or two might still be in this giant freezer where I keep some memorabilia.”

The woman spits out the rag. “You’re evil! Worse than a demon! You cruel, heartless maniac!” Different kinds of insults are thrown at Taeyong’s face. She even spits at him, her glob of saliva landing on his shirt. “Tu devrais mourir!” (“ _You should die!_ ”)

Typically, when one gets told to die, they are offended, scorned. But never Taeyong. He strongly believes no one would be able to kill him. If it isn’t Jaehyun who pulls the trigger, then he’s going to keep being a living nightmare.

Unless fate has something else in store for him.

“This wouldn’t happen if only your husband didn’t run away. Usually it’d be easy to locate runaways but at this point, I’m not even considering he’s still alive. Perhaps, he committed suicide? The burden of it all got too much for him. I assume you warned him prior to heading to Red Phoenix and borrowing that much money.” The knife finds its way to her face, caressing her sunken cheek. “Money which you didn’t get to touch, did not even pass through the palm of your hand since he spent every penny by gambling and bedding prostitutes.”

“Humans are such worldly creatures.” Taeyong chuckles. “You really shouldn’t be mad at me. Mr. Caron made all of these possible. You just got what you deserve.”

“But Andre was innocent! You didn’t have to kill him!”

Taeyong frowns incredulously. “Are you shitting me? What do you take us for, Irina? Forgiving saints? There is no place for forgiveness in me. No matter how small your offense is, I will take and take. Not returning my money was not enough – you also had to be a snitch. What is this, a competition? Who among the Carons can wrong me the most? Well…” He pulls Jaehyun’s gun out of its holster and makes the younger press the muzzle to her head. “You win.”

Irina’s eyes bulge out in fear and panic as she peers up at Jaehyun, furiously pleading. “No! No! Spare me! I will tell you the truth! Don’t kill me, please don’t kill me!” She sobs harder. The tenement rooms are divided by thin walls. Pretty sure the occupants beside this poor excuse of a living space have already picked up on what’s happening.

It means they need to hurry up.

“The truth. What more are you gonna say? We already know you spoke with the Co–”

“I didn’t speak with them! I don’t even know who they are! Believe me, I’ve never been to Corsica Island! Someone came here and took me away…”

Should they believe her or not? When Taeyong first read the letter, he knew right off the bat that Irina Caron, a total nobody without anything valuable to offer couldn’t have talked to a mafia organization’s leader and convinced them to attack Invictus. None of the groups under them have had problems with Ethan Lee for their supreme leader to help _rescue_ someone that isn’t even theirs.

Jaehyun puts the gun away and the woman sighs in great relief. “What are you talking about?”

“A man…a man I don’t know barged in here and demanded that I come with him. When I resisted, I was punched and I lost consciousness. I have no recollection of the events that followed because when I woke up, I was already in a room. It was…it looked like a study. And then…”

Taeyong barks an order for her to continue.

Irina gulps. “And then…there was this distorted voice. It sounded like it came from a speaker. The voice asked me if I was the mother of Andre Caron. After that, it proceeded to know if I wanted him back – and I do! Without thinking twice, I said yes. So they told me they would help me, that I just had to slip a letter in the police station’s mail box and make sure my face wouldn’t be seen.”

“You were taken to Paris?”

“Yes! Yes, it was in Paris. After being instructed what to do, a person who had been standing behind me all along blindfolded me, escorted me out and dropped me off a fair distance from the police station. That’s the only time I was able to remove the blindfold. After dropping the letter, I went to the place I was told to wait. I wore the blindfold again. It all happened within a day. I got sent back here in a taxi.”

Taeyong rhythmically taps the knife on his palm. “You’re not lying to me?”

“I am not!”

“What does the man who took you look like?”

She shakes her head frantically. “He was wearing a face mask. I couldn’t see.”

Jaehyun messes his hair exasperatedly. “That’s no help at all. You were punched, blindfolded to keep you from taking note of the place–”

Her eyes widen in recollection of a particular memory. “I remember something! In the room…there was a…some semblance of a dragon tapestry.”

The implication of _who_ it might be shocks the sharpshooter. When he looks at Taeyong, the latter has the same look on his face.

“Dragon?” Jaehyun’s heart lodges in his throat. “Can you describe it in detail?”

“It’s hard to tell… But I can sketch it quick!” Irina rummages a bag for a paper and a pen, quickly drawing the image straight from memory. Under harsh scrutiny, she still feels the fear buzzing in her veins. It takes her several minutes to finish, handing the paper to Jaehyun right away. “Here!”

“What the hell.”

The sketch of the dragon tattoo that was found on both Kim Taejun and Kim Jaeseok slaps them right in the face.

Taeyong steals the paper and stares hard, inwardly hoping nothing of it is real. The shape, the coiling of its tail, the position...they can’t be mistaken. This is the tattoo of Dragonaire’s kingpin and the kingpin’s son.

“For a third rate, Dragonaire sure is difficult to get rid of. Their tattoo should be a cat ‘cause it looks like they got nine fucking lives. I thought I killed ‘em all? How disappointing.” Taeyong folds the paper and keeps it. “I suppose we got more than what we expected today. Come on, dimple boy. Let’s set a meeting with the Corsican leader and ask how the fuck they are related to a dead Korean group.”

The knife thrower is already opening the door when Jaehyun looks at Irina. “Wait! What are we gonna do with her?”

Taeyong glances at her curtly before his eyes travel to Jaehyun’s. “What do you think? You’re a kingpin. Make yourself useful. Didn’t she say she wants to be with her son?”

“You don’t mean–”

“I mean it, sharpshooter. Give her what she wants.” And then Taeyong leaves, slamming the door close.

Jaehyun contemptuously regards the hysterically sobbing woman who’s clinging to his leg, begging with all her might. He cocks his gun, suppressor on and aims at her in lieu of listening to her cries.

“Please, sir. Let me go. I won’t tell anyone! Don’t kill me!”

The kingpin’s jaw clenches. “I feel bad for you, honestly. But Taeyong and I are having a hard time because of you.”

“I was only a–”

“Say hello to your son for me.”

A flock of birds fly over the tenement just as blood sprays at the broken window of Irina Caron’s room. Taeyong watches them soar in the sky until they disappear behind a thick puff of clouds.

“Irina peut reposer en paix, à présent.” ( _“Irina can rest in peace now.”)_

Finding the exact location of the Corsican leader in the island is not a walk in the park for two reasons: first, their associates are mostly in Corsica and their activities rarely come out of their territory, saved for the groups that hail from neighboring cities. Second, no one wants to talk about the murder capital of France.

Concluding that they will never get the answers they want if they just stay in Bordeaux, the Invictus kingpins fly to the island the soonest available schedule after discussing compensations with the people involved in Red Phoenix. Taeyong, at least, knows better than to leave them hanging. Enduring a long, boring conference is better than dealing with cases filed against him.

The flight to Corsica Island from Bordeaux city is three hours long. Taeyong doesn’t waste time – he knows they won’t last a day, only going there for the sole reason of gathering information and immediately heading back to devise their next course of action with regards to whatever they will get out of the Corsican Mafia leader.

The twins are left in Jennie’s care once again. Jaehyun knows she’s trustworthy, but he can’t get this nagging feeling in his chest that their unknown enemy might come something personal to them now that they’re not around. He hopes that Jennie, and the Black Room squad will be able to handle things if anything goes wrong.

To ask around about the mafia organization leader and accidentally pick the wrong person is dangerous to say the least. But Taeyong has no qualms walking up to everyone, casually inquiring about the whereabouts of said organization leader. Most of the people scurry away in fear, a few look them up and down like they’ve gone mad, and some just straight up deny knowing anything about the island’s crime leader.

Until a man with dark sunglasses on walks up to the second kingpin of Invictus, whispering, “I heard the name you’re looking for and I know where he is.” Then he presents an open palm, and Taeyong wordlessly drops a wad of cash onto it. Satisfied with the thickness of paper money, the man beckons them to follow. They get in a pickup truck and the trip, only lasting half an hour with how reckless the driving is, is spent in complete silence.

The man only tells them they’re in their destination and speeds away the second Jaehyun closes the backseat door. In front of them is a Mediterranean mansion, not looking out of place but definitely richer than the houses standing several feet away. At this time of the day, the area is almost dead. Moreover, the population in Villanova has not even reached half a thousand yet.

A safe choice for a crime leader to live in.

Jaehyun is about to ring the doorbell when three men appear out of nowhere, guns pointed at them. Instinctively he raises his hands in defense, to show that he means no harm. However, his hardheaded husband only giggles and lowers his sunglasses enough for the men to see the amusement in his blue eyes.

“We’re not stupid to come here without our own men to defend us from you.” He says to somehow pacify the obvious lackeys of the Corsican Mafia leader. He knows both of them can fight their way out of here if it comes down to that. “I need to talk to Flavio Ricci.”

“Who are you.”

The second kingpin shows them the creased letter, but only the part where Flavio Ricci’s signature and the organization’s logo can be seen. The forger deserves some credit, Jaehyun muses, for even the closest minions of the Corsican leader himself get tricked. One of them finally speaks to a radio. The two cannot hear the response from the other line but the lackey opens the gates and at last lets them in, loudly locking after them to let them know that if they move a muscle in a way deemed questionable, they are dead.

They are led to an office on the second floor. It’s empty inside, not a soul present aside from them. Jaehyun crosses out the idea of a family residing there.

Left alone once the man leaves, Jaehyun presses a fist to his mouth warily, his eyes scanning the room. “I know I’m a leader myself but this whole Corsican thing is kind of freaking me out.”

“Relax, love. You’re innocent, I’m innocent. And if it really isn’t their leader who came for us, then they have no reason to serve our heads on a platter. Chillax, we’re only going to ask questions. Stop acting like you’re in a white-collar job interview.”

Jaehyun rolls his eyes but forces his nerves to take a chill pill. It would be very embarrassing if the Corsican mafia leader picks up on his jitters. But who could blame him, really? They’re currently in that part of the country where assassination is as common as throwing trash in a bin with the murder rate climbing up to 25 per year, and all executions are linked to criminal gangs due to overdevelopment of drug trade and other illegal transactions.

Corsica was once a part of Italy, which explains it.

He doesn’t even try to talk to Taeyong because he feels like he might get even more nervous – the knife thrower has a knack for seeing through Jaehyun’s façade, and he knows he will only get made fun of. How petty. But still, being in Corsica…his fear is valid. Plus he’s not a psychopath like Lee Taeyong who has a fucked up Amygdala.

Heart stably beating quite fast, he’s about to distract himself with anything his phone can offer when the office door opens and a man exuding a respectable and _fearsome_ air comes in, sitting behind the varnished mahogany desk.

This one is definitely _the_ Flavio Ricci.

Taeyong remains in his improper sitting position despite the arrival of the man that can kill them in a heartbeat. Slouched, a leg perched on a thigh, bored face resting on a hand. His gaze is inscrutable.

Yet surprisingly, Flavio Ricci’s amiable expression upon regarding him does not contort disapprovingly.

“Typically, an outsider will already be dead before they can even catch a glimpse of my home.”

“I don’t belong with those typical people, Flavio. And if I gave the impression of being an outsider, your lackey lingering from Campo Dell Oro wouldn’t even dare to offer driving us here in exchange of a sum.”

The Corsican man smiles and leans against his seat, nodding. “What’s running in your veins is not blood but luck. What is the sudden visit for? To what do I owe the pleasure of having apparently fearless men here?” He asks, looking between them.

Jaehyun sure hopes the man is blind to his inward fear. He glances at Taeyong who thankfully fixes himself.

“I won’t beat around the bush anymore.” The knife thrower gets into business in a serious tone.

The letter, in its wrinkled state is handed to Ricci who opens it right away, eyes scanning the message. He finishes with a hum, folding it once again and looks at the two kingpins, now with a distrustful expression. “I hope you know that forging my own sign down to a T and replicating our seal won’t let you return to your group in peace.”

Taeyong speaks the second Flavio stops as if his response has been readily available, prepared and practiced. But nevertheless, it’s impactful. “And I hope you’re just saying that in general, not to _me_ specifically because it makes no sense that I would attack my own group and jeopardize my business, pretending to be you. Five cops from the Paris police department attempted a minor raid to Red Phoenix, a casino under Invictus. It came to my knowledge that they were members of the Unione Corse, a group that under the Corsican Mafia that enjoys control in the government, particularly in the police. I was told by one of them that there was no need for verification if a letter includes your name, as well as the logo.”

Flavio exhales. “That is true.”

“So do you know an Irina Caron?”

At the mention of the woman’s name, Jaehyun momentarily closes his eyes as mild pain throbs in his head.

“No. Not in my entire life had I ever encountered such name.” The man rubs his chin, thinking. “I don’t think my predecessor also knew someone called Irina Caron.”

Taeyong’s eyes harden. “She was the woman that letter speaks of receiving aid from you. Anyway, she’s gone. I would like to ask if you know someone that could use you, because I know it can’t be you. I’ve never wronged any of your groups as well.”

Ricci ponders for a while, frowning. Rather than doubting Taeyong’s words, he looks like he’s thinking of whoever among the groups in his org could’ve had the sick idea of attacking a contender in Bordeaux.

“If that’s the case, then the letter was indeed fabricated. However, my sign there looks authentic enough. Whoever did this has a very photographic memory or has a sample of another letter, one that is real. That person could also be involved with me; I should not rule that out. Otherwise, they would’ve never seen my signature.”

“We might have an idea.” Jaehyun catches the Corsican leader’s attention. “Please allow us a list of the groups under your leadership if you have it.” He knows what he’s asking for is ridiculous. No leader would out their members’ identity to a potential enemy. So Flavio’s disagreement is only natural.

He might as well consider praying for his life now. Suddenly, his fear heightens.

“I can’t do that.” The man huffs. “That is way too confidential. It’s like offering their souls to the reaper and they aren’t even dead yet.” 

“Your signature is also way too confidential but you wave it around in letters to keep your traditional message delivery going.”

Jaehyun inwardly grumbles, choking Taeyong in his head for his unbridled sarcasm regardless of who he’s talking to.

Taeyong continues. “Are you really going to let an impostor walk freely and take advantage of you or are you gonna help us solve this? If you don’t help us figure it out then it’s not a farfetched dream for them to steal your business by fabricating more of these letters.”

“I should get something out of this.” Flavio bargains, like he should. Like everyone does. Nothing is for free in this world.

Neither Invictus kingpin bats an eye. In another occasion, they will do the same thing.

“I promise you that you will receive something from me once the problem has been settled. Have someone prepare a contract and I will sign it.”

Jaehyun internally winces. He’s perfectly aware that the other’s morals, or the lack of it, are askew. But a single _please_ won’t hurt since they’re the ones requesting for a confidential record.

Yet still, it isn’t frowned upon.

_Huh. A psychopath’s charm is really effortless, isn’t it? They don’t even have to try. It comes out naturally. Sans the aggression and terrible bouts of impulse, they’ve got some advantage._

Flavio speaks to the radio, already decided. Not a minute later the same lackey comes in with a file and hands it to Lee Taeyong who dives on it right away, skimming through names and names of groups, from the very year the organization was established up to now, from small to big members.

From his seat across his husband, Jaehyun just watches the other flip through pages without a change in his face, no clues if he has found what he’s looking for. Only when the record closes does Taeyong look at Jaehyun, still unblinking.

“The group we have in mind is not here.” He deadpans, dropping from the height of anticipation.

“Who is it?”

The knife thrower gazes at the Corsican leader, lips pursed, like his mouth wants to busy itself on a lollipop, or a cigarette stick. Currently, he has neither of those so he inevitably chews on the inside of his cheek. “Dragonaire.”

“The Corsican mafia houses no Dragonaire group. Not since I took over and it shows there in the book you are holding.” Flavio shifts his gaze between them. “I believe ever since the organization was created, no group with such name pledged to be our member. But it could be possible that a group has encountered them although I can’t think of a reason how they would have their hands on one of my letters.”

“But Irina Caron said the room she was taken to has a dragon tapestry.” The sharpshooter’s agitation starts to show in his tone. “That particular dragon was fond on the bodies of Dragonaire’s kingpin and his son. That indicates that Dragonaire is or was involved with you.” 

“What is their placement in the underground?”

“Third rate.” Taeyong scowls. “It was a Korean group. Almost four years ago, all of their org members were killed, especially the kingpin. They went against my former group. I didn’t expect that they would hold a grudge until now, much less find remnants that could fly here and kidnap Irina Caron. She was used as a way to raid my casino.”

Flavio looks the least bit mystified. “The cops didn’t recognize the casino? I’m here in Corsica Island and still, I’m vaguely aware of its existence.”

“It might have slipped their mind. Considering the casino doesn’t have its name plastered outside, they didn’t think it through. The letter also does not have its name there, just an address. And even if they knew, with your believable signature and seal there, they would still go.”

“Alright… But we really don’t know a Dragonaire. We can’t be associates with a third rate, dead Korean group. I have a question,” the Corsican leader leans forward, elbows propped on the desk. “I know you are both intelligent. I have heard of the mythical heir. Now, do you think it really was this Dragonaire you are talking about? Do you really consider they still exist? You already said you killed their kingpin.”

One thing Lee Taeyong _hates_ for certain, in his own way, is when someone questions his ideas.

He twists the ring around his finger, weighing his thoughts.

“The remnants could’ve gotten hold of a letter sent to your subordinates. I don’t know how. But I’m going to consider even the most absurd possibility right now.”

“Very well. In times like this, you have to think of the impossible. You have a lot of enemies, I suppose – even enemies in hiding. They could be the ones that perpetrated this. That also means I have to tighten the security of these letters.”

Jaehyun chimes in. “Please consider creating an impenetrable system.”

“The groups in this Island are already using that, especially Unione Corse.”

At the mention of Unione Corse, Jaehyun casts a quick glance at the second kingpin before continuing. “I wonder why the impostor did not just hack through Unione Corse’s system so as not to use your name…”

Flavio chuckles, but there’s no air of mockery in it. “Doing that, the members would verify it with their kingpin. The plan against you would not commence. It made more sense to use my name as they would automatically work without questions.”

The two’s exchange gets cut off when Taeyong speaks, easily stealing both of their attention. “I still firmly believe you know this impostor. And this person or group loathes Invictus’ existence. Putting that aside for now, your organization controls the whole of Corsica Island and a few members belong to other cities.” He follows it with a compliment, a rare thing from the man who thinks too highly of himself. “How easy it must be for you to operate in the black market considering the number of your crime groups. Such excellent leadership.”

Ricci thinks nothing malicious of it and takes it with a smile. Jaehyun is momentarily reminded of Lee Namgyu who regarded their batch with such atypical kindness when they officially became Red Phoenix members.

“Corsica is widely known as the murder capital of France. Yet the police can’t seem to eliminate us. These smalltime criminals who target ordinary Corsican residents and even tourists are used as a front, and the government thinks Corsica is just filled with thousands of murderers. That conventionalized reputation continues to instill fear, preventing them from investigating. They think once they step foot in here, they’ll get shot in a millisecond – which is possible.” The organization leader boasts. “That’s how barbaric they think this island is which is favorable to us as we continue our business without having to worry. And look,” he spreads his arms, expression proud, “since 1910s, and our territory spread out to Latin America and North Africa.”

 _That’s...a very impressive feat,_ the sharpshooter muses. Could he do the same, one day?

Taeyong opens the record again and scans for the nth time as if Dragonaire’s name would magically appear in its pages.

“That must be purely due to your hard work, together with the groups in the organization. I aspire to be this influential, Mr. Ricci.” Jaehyun caresses the leader’s ego. Hey, he’s not as prideful as his husband.

Before Flavio Ricci could accept the praise, the knife thrower snaps his fingers, eyes wide with unadulterated curiosity fused in slight interest. “I’ve scanned all the pages and I noticed that Garnet is missing.”

The sharpshooter raises a brow, wariness dwindling. How come he doesn’t know?

“Didn’t Garnet start in Marseille? They were one of the few small groups that started there and remained while everyone else disappeared, except for Unione Corse. Certainly, they should be in your most recent record – but even with my pellucid vision, I cannot see their name here.”

Jaehyun cannot help it anymore and asks. “Why don’t I know that?”

Taeyong gazes at him flatly. “Because I only overheard that during a video conference between RP and Garnet. Come to think of it, Fort should’ve mentioned that once or twice, no?”

“That’s because Garnet terminated their membership about five years ago.” Flavio explains. “We don’t exactly keep track of exes, gentlemen.”

“Why?” Taeyong asks and extends a hand at Jaehyun. “Do you have a candy?”

He gets one right away and soon, grape flavor fills his mouth.

The Corsican Mafia leader dismisses the odd dynamics between the two kingpins and proceeds to talk about their former member. “We were given no other reason than the wish for independence, something that we cannot forbid no matter the reason. If these groups wish to go, they can – with the promise that there would be no bad blood, and both parties will not cause each other troubles.

Rumors are born each day and one said Garnet was trying to get into the Sicilian Mafia. Though nothing but a rumor, it would be most likely because of its stronger influence than the Corsican. You know how Garnet is – it moves in the shadows. Unless there’s an extravagant gala, you’ll never know what goes on in the kingpin’s head.”

The bit of information prompts the knife thrower to clarify a part of it. “Corsican Mafia is allies with the Sicilian Mafia since the island was once a part of Italy. If the rumor is true, why did Garnet even leave if they are planning to join the so-called Cosa Nostra anyway?”

“Because Corsica is small. The Corsican may have the Unione Corse, but the Sicilian is way too powerful. The numbers of clans alone can attest to its sturdiness. You can try getting into it if you have a certain agenda. People change – they sleep with this mindset and wake up the next morning wanting to venture into new challenges.

It seems like Fort has different plans for the group as opposed to his father’s. Speaking of their former kingpin, Jung Hajin...we haven’t heard of him for a long time.”

Stuck in the thought of that rumor, Jaehyun asks. “Casanov is an Italian group, right?”

“It operates under the Sicilian Mafia, yes.”

“So Garnet was in the midst of moving to Italy when Invictus came to propose business?”

Taeyong is the one who answers, obviously, because Flavio Ricci has got nothing to do with Invictus relations to Garnet. “But Garnet suddenly retracted and partnered up with IV – which is simply under Le Milieu.”

“We are all under Le Milieu.” Jaehyun swallows the urge to roll his eyes at the other’s insinuation that Invictus is not that impressive as compared to the Sicily clans. It’s a fact, though. He just refuses to let it insult him.

“Exactly. So why is it you, instead of going straight to Italy?” Flavio speaks again and shrugs. “That only means the word on the street about Garnet joining the Sicilian Mafia is nothing but a baseless rumor. See, Garnet is a household name. Everyone talks about it and the discourse evolves as it passes from one person to another. They just really want to have absolute control in their group, hence the separation from us.”

“Okay!” Taeyong exaggeratedly says and shifts in his seat, slouching once again. Ah, the pretense is over. One of his many faces has given up. He waves his hand dismissively. “Despite being a Garnet member, I don’t really give a shit about it so I don’t know what the heck its plans are. Not like anyone even tells me anything.” A smile breaks out on his face. “I was not expecting to discuss this with you, though.”

Flavio laughs good-naturedly. “Because you checked the record and noticed something. I got an explanation. At least, you have more knowledge about the group you got yourself into, yes? But back to the matter you came here for – who could pretend to be the Corsican and target you at the same time?”

Someone enters holding a folder, not one of the men that cornered them outside of the mansion. It’s the contract, already printed and ready for the Invictus kingpins to sign. Apparently, while in the middle of checking the records, Flavio has signaled the lackey in the room to alert an assistant.

Taeyong doesn’t even pretend to read its content before carelessly signing his name at the bottom of the paper and passing it to Jaehyun who does the reading for him. “I don’t know right now. There should be a fuckton of them that could’ve had their hands on one of your letters. Tsk. One fucking letter causing this much headache. The thing with Dragonaire could easily be just a ploy. I will have our men investigate.”

Jaehyun looks at him. “Who’s going to do that?”

“Your squad. You know how my men are. They’re only useful in combat. We ain’t got a brain like Kim Doyoung here.”

“What’s the plan now?” The Corsican leader inquires. “An investigation can stretch for a long time. And you are right – this enemy is freely using my name. It could tarnish the whole organization’s reputation.”

Honestly, the situation is complicated. They cannot think of anyone bold enough to do this. The perpetrator may be constructing another plan now and who knows? It might be bigger than the first try. They need to come up with something that will catch the enemy as soon as possible.

Taeyong looks at Flavio, and then at Jaehyun. He actually has already thought of what to do. It’s messy, risky, and borderline _suicidal_ , but it’s better than nothing. Flavio Ricci may be the leader of an island of criminals and Jaehyun managed to give Invictus some recognition, but it’s clear that the two are more worried about the identity of the enemy than about having a concrete action to _know_ the identity of said enemy.

He smirks. At the end of the day, even if countless clever leaders are gathered in a single room, he’s still going to stand out, isn’t he?

“Hey, Jaehyun. You trust me, right?”

Owner of said name glances at the knife thrower and instantly feels wary. “Taeyong, what is this?”

“Trust me. This is going to work.” Taeyong faces the Corsican leader. “I wish to speak with the ruler of Unione Corse.”

“The Unione Corse. Right now.” Flavio sounds like he’s in disbelief. Even so, he phones the leader of his organization’s major group.

Jaehyun begins to panic. “Lee Taeyong.”

He’s only met with a hand to signal him to stop. He cannot stop. Why does it feel like he’s being ignored right now, when he shares equal power with Lee Taeyong in deciding the future of Invictus?

“Your lucky stars encountered a minor glitch but they’re working again – the leader himself is not here but their second-in-command is around.”

“How close?”

“Pierre Dalle is on the way.”

The Corsican leader offers them something to drink but Jaehyun politely declines, too anxious about the whole meeting. He has zero idea about what Taeyong has in store for all of them. But if this is going to work, then he will at least listen and hope for the best Invictus will be able to survive it.

Whatever it is, since the idea is coming from Lee Taeyong who’s made up of hazard and risks that prove to be effective at the end of the day, Jaehyun might as well go along.

Forget being the first kingpin – sometimes he’s too apprehensive that playing safe won’t do all of them any good.

Fifteen minutes later, the second-in-command of Unione Corse arrives and takes a seat next to the sharpshooter.

Pierre Dalle is a government official in the light of day and an ally of the drug trade by night. He is one of the people that hold some power in the law enforcement, having connections with the high-ranking officials.

Pleasantries that are unnecessary but made to uplift the atmosphere are made before Taeyong cuts to chase and explains the general situation of Invictus and Corsican Mafia facing an unidentified but potentially highly threatening enemy.

“Before I tell you about the plot, did one of the cops report back to you about the supposed casino raid?”

“No,” Pierre has a hard gaze as he answers, “In fact, the men that were sent out from Paris, as I was informed prior have been unreachable. They didn’t go to work.”

“That’s because I fed four of them to a couple of hungry wolves.” His revelation takes Dalle off-guard, mouth agape in shock. “The one I magnanimously released to tell you what happened is apparently missing, huh?”

Pierre clears his throat and glares at the knife thrower. “You killed our members? What made you think I would listen to what you want to happen?”

Flavio is quick to be the two’s mediator, sensing the growing tension from Pierre. “Dalle, calm down. The Invictus kingpins and I have already discussed the problem. What I can tell assure is that someone out there, someone that might take advantage of my power and sabotage you eventually is the one at fault for these cops’ death. As a kingpin, would you let just about anyone trample you?”

“I’m not a kingpin, but…but that’s still five lives lost. It will not affect the manpower but that will still require an investigation. If it leads them to Invictus, it would be complicated.”

“That’s why we need your help.” Taeyong reiterates. “Usually, I would not stoop low as I’m self-aware of my own capabilities but this is not just about me anymore.” His eyes glance at Jaehyun quickly before going back to Pierre. “Like I told Flavio, I will offer you cash, tantamount to your effort in the execution of this plan.”

And without further ado, he drops the bomb that blasts literally every single cell in Jeong Jaehyun’s body, rendering him momentarily speechless.

“I want to close Invictus.”

The sentence rings incessantly like a broken record in the sharpshooter’s head, his mind trying to cope with the weight of those words before he manages to move a muscle, and then his chest explodes with outrage.

“LEE TAEYONG!” His voice booms and bounces against the corners of the room. Jaehyun gives no fucks at the moment for the two other men. Right now, the only thing he sees is Taeyong’s ridiculous unaffected face and the only thing his mind registers is the absurdity of the knife thrower’s suggestion. “You can’t just terminate the group I inherited!”

Taeyong picks his ear as a show of going deaf with how loud his husband is being. He pushes the younger down to his seat and pats his cheek. “Hush, dimple boy.” He gets his hand swatted. “Listen to me. We _have_ to do this. If we don’t close Invictus, whoever wants it gone will come back again and again to create more mess. I know that we already established the fact that the source of the letter might not be from the Corsican Mafia and no one will follow through with the future orders from them given what happened to the Unione Corse cops but we have to end this once and for all. As long as there’s no news about Invictus getting caught, these people will use all the tricks up their sleeves.

We can’t let it continue. What better way to curb it than giving them what they want? Once it hits the news, they might even come out.”

Still reeling, he asks. “What news?”

Taeyong smiles as he readies himself to spill what will be a dangerous strategy. “This is where Unione Corse enters the scene. We need their full force to stage a raid to Invictus. This will be big, so there would be news coverage. It will be broadcasted nationwide, even to a few other countries. I want to fool our common enemy into thinking they succeeded.

At the moment, they still don’t know that their plan failed since the cops are dead. One is missing. And even if they were alive, they would only report to the Corsican.”

Flavio breaks his silence. “Didn’t they think that by doing this, whether their act of sabotage works or not, Corsica wouldn’t hunt them down?”

The knife thrower shakes his head. “The Corsica and Invictus would only arrive to a dead end – Dragonaire. If it is Dragonaire, we will still have to find them which can possibly take a long time. If it isn’t Dragonaire, then it’s literally the end. We will never be able to know who it is. Though my intuition really tells me the dragon tapestry is only done by that group. That’s why we need to do this. By shutting down Invictus _temporarily,_ ” Taeyong looks at Jaehyun pointedly, “the enemy will take advantage of it.”

Jaehyun pinches the bridge of his nose. “But what if they don’t do anything? What if they only want to see us hit rock bottom?”

“Who the fuck even does that for nothing? Invictus is huge in the French mob. One way or another, those bastards will come out. We need to monitor them by having ears and eyes everywhere.”

“But what about our clients?”

Taeyong dismissively waves his hand. “We can fix it. I’m sure the enemy will not stall and will be on the move as soon as the country knows about a group’s downfall. Someone is bound to take advantage of it. Don’t worry so much, Jaehyun. We have a lot of money to cover the expenses. If you don’t want to touch IV’s money then I’ll use my own. Once this is done, we can get our clients back and if they don’t, there are more willing to talk to us. The world is not ending. There are far too many of our king for you to worry about going bankrupt.”

Flavio relaxes, sipping his beer. “Sounds like a plan. What do you say, Dalle?”

“It’s going to be chaotic. Since it will be big, we can’t ensure that the good cops won’t be involved. We can try only taking the Unione Corse members for the raid, but it will be suspicious if the other authorities are questionably banned from partaking.”

“That’s why you should put more effort. Do everything to prevent the government from looking deeper into it. I will pay you a _huge_ amount, Mr. Dalle.” Taeyong assures the other man and proves it by fishing out a check with a mouth-watering price already written to it. “I know the Unione Corse has great influence over the hags sitting in high positions.” He hands over the check and smirks as Pierre Dalle literally gulps at the sight of a series of numbers.

Amidst all of this, the sharpshooter has been doing breathing deeply to calm down and consider the whole thing with a clearer mind.

“Wasn’t the last godfather of Corsica caught?” Jaehyun looks at Flavio. “Does it mean the government is not _that_ intimidated by this island’s reputation?”

Flavio chuckles. “Not everybody knows this, but that godfather attempted to embezzle money from all the groups that’s why we collectively agreed to one-up him and have him arrested. If he points fingers, he’s going to regret it. Yes, Jeong Jaehyun. Corsican groups went against the godfather – and we still have more of them. That is how much the word of Unione Corse is valued by the authorities. But why did you ask that?”

The younger kingpin takes a deep breath, chants _this is going to work_ in his head like a mantra. “I just wanted to be sure. Because if we’re going to cross the Rubicon, then please take my suggestion into consideration. The French government is afraid of the Corsican mafia, isn’t it? Afraid of its capabilities, immobile because a portion of its members itself take part in the office…”

Without being straight to the point, Taeyong easily picks up on what his husband wants to say. “You want to register Invictus under the Corsican Mafia?”

“Yes.” Jaehyun’s heart drums. “But I know that if it’s broadcasted, the whole raid won’t make sense – because the Unione Corse would know if the casino’s owned by a Corsican member. Let the Unione Corse raid it and tell the others, the innocent officials that IV _might_ be related to Flavio Ricci. I don’t know how you’re going to explain to them but do it. Tell them you are not entirely sure of it, though. France fears the Corsican and if the media so much as mention the alleged, unproven accusation, there’s a high chance that they will be targeted, right?”

Flavio confirms it. “Precisely. I don’t wish to be talked about. Our existence is an elephant in the room. They know to leave it that way.”

“See? And our common enemy will never know why the authorities are not doing an intensive investigation. No journalist would dare mention Corsica. The higher officials, especially those who are connected to the Unione Corse will tell everyone the cops received an anonymous letter – the letter we got, but they have to manipulate the details. They cannot let any independent team investigate Invictus because one, there are not entirely sure of its involvement with Corsica. What if it is? They could be targeted if IV is indeed protected. What if it is not? They could be targeted, still, because they involved Corsica who has nothing to do with this. This applies to the media as well. Raid Invictus and leave it alone. The enemy will come out at night when everyone doesn’t give a shit about playing guard dogs.”

His words are met with by the Corsican leader with a promise of being treasured if they decide to pledge as members of the organization. Significantly, in the future though it’s still unclear, Invictus will no longer fear security as they will be given immense protection by the Unione Corse without having to keep paying. Once Invictus is under the Corsican Mafia, it will be allies with the law enforcement.

Jaehyun takes a moment. They’re already here. If this meeting goes to naught, the problem will not be solved. They need to go through the needle’s narrow hole to breathe that fresh air again. Peaceful nights will come; they just need to take this incredible risk.

He worked so hard for Invictus to be where it’s at. He will work hard again to pull it back up after this mess, together with Taeyong.

“Let’s do this.” Determination fuels him. “We can do this.”

“Our dear friend is daring enough to warrant this.” Taeyong grins at everyone cheekily, hissing his next words through gritted teeth. “Let’s work together, shall we?”

This is probably the first time Jaehyun has seen everyone working in the French HQ ever since he transferred. Right after finalizing the plan in Corsica, they fly back to Bordeaux and call for an emergency meeting, including the team in Korea through a video call.

He’s hungry, he’s tired, and his head is pulsing from a terrible migraine but this cannot be postponed. Every second counts.

As soon as the call to Korea goes through, Taeyong drops his body down the swivel chair, feet up the table. “On second thought, I’m too tired to talk so Jaehyun, you be the one to tell ‘em.”

“This suspense is killing me,” Ten comments, fiddling with the pen in his hand. “You sent a message through the burner phone; this should be something distressing.”

Jaehyun sighs and remains standing next to the knife thrower, too restless to even let himself take a seat. “I know this is the first time I’m discussing things with you,” he directs to the members the French HQ, “and speaking on behalf of Taeyong but I hope you guys will listen to me because this is something we cannot ignore. There’s really no sugarcoating it.” He takes a deep breath and looks Doyoung straight in the eye through the monitor. “We’re shutting down Invictus and that means every single operation – businesses, and even the fight club.”

Johnny sputters dumbly, mouth closing and opening. A cacophony of questions and confusion fused with panic fills the room, worsening Jaehyun’s headache. Taeyong remains lounging in his seat.

“What?! Jaehyun, what the fuck is happening?” Yuta voices it out when none of the KR squad finds the energy to talk, too shocked by the unexpected announcement. “Are we in trouble?”

“ _Temporarily._ ” The sharpshooter clarifies. Yet it does not make things any better as the kingpins are bombarded with new questions and protests. The noise only dies down when Taeyong puts his feet down, his blue eyes dark and cold. Jaehyun mentally thanks him and continues. “You guys remember the cops that raided the casino? Apparently, it’s bigger than that. I wanna be transparent with everyone and honestly speaking, it is not the Corsican Mafia that we need to watch.”

Doyoung unlocks his phone and begins to record the meeting.

“It’s an old enemy. Now, we are telling you this because there will be a staged raid. It’s according to the final plan that the Unione Corse will ambush the casino and then the headquarters. The team handling delicate files and records, go make backups. The authorities won’t dig too much but we’re playing safe. Field work will be halted. This is growing to draw flak from the clients but leave it up to us. All weapons, parcels, whatever is in here that will not be taken to a hideout, don’t touch it. Let them seize it. If they find the building absolutely empty, it will arouse suspicions which defeat the purpose of the plan.”

Sungjong asks. “What’s the exact plan? What do we want to gain by closing down?”

“The enemy will not do all these and not touch anything of ours. Be it the weapons, the other items, or hacking through the system. However they do it, we’re expecting some activity within the HQ. We will be in hiding all throughout the duration of blockade. For us to monitor any strange activity, some of the Unione Corse will be monitoring and reporting to us.”

Someone asks again, one of the men designated in field operations. “When is it happening?”

“On the next off day, which is in three days. Since there is practically no work in the HQ, only the security will be present and–”

The security team of the HQ cries out their disagreement with the setup. Taeyong clicks his tongue and stands up, voice thundering through the whines of displeasure.

“Can’t you understand? Even if it’s staged, it has to look at unexpected as it should. The remaining people will continue their job, alright? You’ll do nothing but guard the entrances and then let the cops cuff you down the ground. You’re not gonna get shot, I’m telling you. The Unione Corse knows what to do with you. If you need to be imprisoned, chill and we’ll get you out of there. The rest of you should stay at home. We don’t know for sure how long this will take place but relax, you’re still gonna get paid for literally sitting your ass down.”

The security team does not say more but their faces speak volumes of trepidation.

Yukhei raises a hand to call the knife thrower’s attention. “Are you going to need us to do anything?”

“I don’t know yet. Perhaps. Just stay alert. If you think you’re not safe in your place, move somewhere. I’ll cover the cost.”

Jaehyun turns to him, a little worried. “Yong, you’re spending too much. You already paid half to Unione Corse upfront.”

“It’s nothing. We are accountable for everyone that works for us. You should probably notify your squad about spearheading the tracking down of Dragonaire.”

“What!” This time, it’s Yuta who exclaims annoyingly while the rest of the KR team gawks disbelievingly. “Aren’t they gone?!”

The younger kingpin groans and shrugs, desperate to finally call it a day and hit the sack. “Apparently not. I _know,_ guys. I’m a little irritated too. The only trace they left is a tapestry with a Dragon – the same dragon tattoo their kingpin and his son had.”

Doyoung regains composure and clears his throat. _Always the sensible one._ “So shit goes down in three days. It will be stressful. I suppose the meeting with the Corsican mob drained you as well. The meeting should end now since everyone already knows what to do.”

“God. Thank you, Doyoung. I didn’t really know how to conclude this properly.” Jaehyun turns off the monitor and speaks with his friends in private, explaining the deal with Dragonaire and why they need to be hunted down. Taeyong takes it from there to dismiss the others, reminding them to stay off the grid once hell breaks loose.

As soon as it’s over, when silence traps them again, Jaehyun lets himself lean against the older. Taeyong does not say anything and just brings them both home for a much needed rest, with dread coiling in the pit of the sharpshooter’s stomach.

“I already got the memo.”

Jennie tells them the second the two kingpins enter the penthouse. She’s dressed decently for a change as per Jaehyun’s instruction. At first, she was against covering her skin but lately realized that the kids might get the wrong impression – whatever her skimpy clothes might say about her.

The sun is yet to set south, still high up but slightly obscured by the clouds. It’s rainy, the roads wet and the wind constantly blowing. Jaehyun nods at her and heads straight to the master’s bedroom to take a shower. Meanwhile, Taeyong pads over to the kitchen with the lady in tow, already bugging him for payment.

“Come on, babysitting isn’t free.”

“What?” Taeyong gulps down a bottle of water, scratching his healing knuckles on the side of his coat. “You don’t need more. You can buy those flashy jewelry, yeah? That’s because you’re stinky rich now.”

She frowns. “How do you think I get these expensive accessories? I have a sugar daddy on top of the income I get. That’s right! Working for you is not enough. Sometimes I even feel my hand burning when I withdraw the money from the bank because it runs out fast.” Wailing by the counter and receiving no ounce of sympathy, the scenario becomes absolutely comical. Taeyong fishes out cash from his wallet with a grunt, rolling the bills and slipping them in the woman’s blouse.

“I don’t know the wage for babysitters but that’s definitely above minimum.”

Jennie pats her chest and grins at the feel of cash before fixing her boob in the cup of her bra, securing the hard-earned payment. “You’re so unfair with me. Chanyeol said you’re paying for their temporary apartment if they wanna move out. But I have to beg for my paltry babysitting rate!” The cash is taken out of her chest and Jennie counts it, eyes widening as she comes up with 200 Euro.

A rough hand grabs her jaw, the hold not tight but firm enough for her to look up at Taeyong.

“That enough for less than 10 hours?”

Confirming with a nod, Jennie pulls away and saunters out of the kitchen to fix her things. Taeyong looks around the living room and notices how orderly everything is. “Where are the gremlins?”

“They’re asleep in their room. I hope you don’t mind that we played a lot – they helped me clean up anyway! Such cute kids.”

Taeyong ignores the last part and sees her out. Just as he closes the door, Jaehyun comes out in a pair of clean clothes, hair still dripping as he towel dries it.

“That was quick.” The knife thrower pertains to the younger’s shower. Jaehyun merely smiles at him before picking up his phone to order food online.

“She’s gone? I didn’t get to thank her.”

“A thank you will be unappreciated if not equivalent to cash. I already paid her. What are you doing?” Taeyong walks up to the younger and stands behind him, his chin on the wide shoulder. “Get me something heavy. I’m fucking starving.”

Jaehyun hums, finishing the order and practically tosses his phone out of the way so he can pull Taeyong in his arms and let the older lean his weight against his. “So where are we staying after the raid? I don’t think we should be too complacent. Let’s get out of the city, at least. It will be stressful to be near the mess.”

Taeyong blankly stares at the wall in front of him and remains unmoving, too lazy to even lift a finger. His stomach is growling and as much as he wants to munch on a chocolate bar for now, he’s admittedly getting sick of having the same sugary food all the time. Additionally, his position at the moment is too comfortable to get away from.

“Garnet? I’m a member so I should have a say there. They got an indoor basketball court. You can play while holing yourself up inside.”

“We should transfer Léonie to a hospital in Paris.”

Fingers soothingly draw circles on Taeyong’s spine, teasingly travelling up and down to work alleviate the stress that consumes him. It might not show overtly, but one cannot be too sure. “We don’t need to do that. I’m certain they will not allow our real identities to be exposed. Invictus will be called a different name if they have to tell the media. Plus, if the enemy wanted to go for the easiest target, it would’ve been her.”

“You’re right. There’s no other way to get us to come out easily than to have the closest to us consciously tangled in this ordeal.”

“Like before?” The knife thrower mumbles. Memories of his helpless mother bound to a chair in a dirty room, crying and desperately begging being the Dragonaire member to stop putting his hands on her flood him all of a sudden. Jaehyun is right. If the enemy wanted him, they would’ve gone for Léonie right off the bat.

But the fight is far from over.

Jaehyun releases him, only to cup his cheeks and stare into his eyes. “I still can’t fully comprehend this is happening after that wonderful trip. But I understand that as long as we’re in this clandestine market, we cannot run away from those that will literally flip the whole world just to get rid of us. We’re only an independent group and we’re already facing so much, what more if we’re bigger than this?”

“Do you want us to be bigger than this?” Taeyong frankly asks as he puts Jaehyun’s hands down. “Tell me the truth. You can either be honest or lie and allow me to see through you. Are you contented with this?”

The sharpshooter licks his lips as the gears in his head turn. His gaze drops while his thoughts swirl, racing to come to an answer. When he arrives at it, Jaehyun bravely holds Taeyong’s intimidating stare.

“The limit does not exist.”

He’s half expecting the knife thrower to scoff at him but he’s met with a laughing Taeyong, eyes crinkling at the sides as he doubles over while clutching his stomach.

“What’s funny?” Jaehyun asks and he’s already chuckling even though he has no idea what’s making them both laugh.

Taeyong throws his head back this time with a loud cackle, loud enough to wake the twins in their room. “Yeah, the limit does not exist. And on Wednesdays, I wear pink.”

“You don’t wear pink… Your closet is literally black.”

Then the noise stops all at once like Taeyong wasn’t even laughing at all. He just stares at Jaehyun the way he does when the younger does something stupid.

“You’re such an uncultured swine.” Taeyong shakes his head disapprovingly before getting the door when the delivery arrives, leaving Jaehyun unbelievably lost.

“Did I say something wrong?”


	2. Chapter 2

It has been an hour and the five members of the KR squad remain stupefied by the news. Not knowing exactly what to feel and think anymore as it seems like the heavens has decided to drop concretes on their heads, they just sit in peace, waiting for the time they’ll eventually come to their senses.

Said sense is found first by Yuta who bursts out yet again. “What the fuck?”

“You’ve been mumbling that for the past hour and I’m requesting you to stop it now, while I’m still patient.” Ten sighs and clutches his head in frustration. “But same! What’s going to happen to the businesses? I mean, the legal ones.”

“From what Jaehyun said, those are still safe. The government will release fake identities should the media demand it. So our other sources of income will not be affected. Although we have to lie low and send the office some half-assed excuse as to why we shouldn’t be contacted for the meantime.” Doyoung opens the laptop again and begins coding, his brows furrowed in deep concentration.

Ten seems pacified for now. Johnny exhales with both hands covering his face and peeks at everyone through the gaps between his fingers. “I can’t think of anything but Dragonaire, actually. Their name keeps ringing in my head like I suddenly don’t know anything other than that. This must be a curse.”

“A curse, indeed. I don’t know how to trace them down. How do we get a list of the names?”

“How about we search Kim Taejun and Kim Jaeseok online? They should have mutual connections. Social media accounts might even help us. Try Kim Jaeseok. Pretty sure he’s got friends whose dads are close to his father.” Winwin provides helpfully. Doyoung sends him a look that screams _you saved my life_ before closing the laptop.

“Alright, we can do that. But for now, we need sleep. I get it that the news couldn’t wait but wow, I’ve never hated time zones as much as I hate it now.”

The four of them finally move to get ready to leave Doyoung’s place and when they’re at the door, they only notice that they’re lacking one more head.

“Yuta?” Ten calls the Japanese.

Doyoung looks at the man in daze for a few seconds, waiting for Yuta to get his ass out of the former’s place. Another minute passes and Doyoung just straight up shoves the guy’s head, receiving a glare and a petulant cry.

“That’s so uncalled for!”

“What’s uncalled for is you not moving your ass out of my place because you were pathetically lost in your own world. It’s been happening lately and I’m starting to think you’re taking drugs.”

“What’s wrong with taking drugs,” Yuta mumbles while putting his shoes on. “We literally sell it.”

Doyoung eyes roll so hard they almost fall of. He literally whacks the Japanese on the head again in annoyance. “Stop being a smartass and leave, all of you! I need sleep!”

The last thing Doyoung sees is Yuta giving him the bad finger before the door closes to finally lend him a few hours of peace.

This work is killing him in more ways than one.

The whole wait for the raid is filled with worry and uneasiness despite trying to drown those emotions beneath a mountain of work. Everyone keeps themselves busy and even when there’s nothing much to do, the already finished tasks are being checked thoroughly just to get their mind off of things. Everyone is in constant state of alert, watching for suspicious behaviors and events around the headquarters and even at the casino. Though it is technically close, a few are delegated to keep an eye on possible actions from unauthorized individuals.

But no matter how much they tried not to think of it, when the day finally comes, not a single person is not on the edge of his seat. The security does their best to perform naturally – standing by the entrance, walking around to inspect and even checking some of the boxes of smuggled animal skins that just arrived, to be sent to the black market as soon as possible.

Taeyong skips sleep the night before. Wide eyed so as not to miss any movement, he monitors the casino through the surveillance camera installed to the lamppost nearest to the building. The establishments surrounding the casino are not yet open, waiting for the evening to come and resurrect the nightlife in the city of Bordeaux. Things will be extremely interesting in just two more hours. Unione Corse will be coming for Red Phoenix today, and then for the headquarters tomorrow to give it a day for the cops to connect the dots and _magically_ discover the existence of said crime den in the span of an unbelievably short time.

A plate of cupcakes accompanies the knife thrower in the living room of his penthouse while he oversees the events or the lack thereof unfolding at the casino. It’s frustratingly boring for someone who will find it…well, boring, but the anticipation building is what keeps the second kingpin attentive. If one attempts to observe him, they will surely give up as Taeyong has no plans to leave his seat and do something that isn’t eating, blinking and breathing.

The twins know better than to disturb him as they are strictly told by Jaehyun not to distract the older man. They can play and make as much noise as they can next time – but not today. Without questions, the siblings do their best to behave even though they got questions itching to be answered. Like who exactly the babysitter was from yesterday because one, she’s funny and two, she’s almost as nice as Léonie except for when she literally made them pick up all their toys and clean the place, and nap like other kids do. They’re not like other kids, so napping in the afternoon was done halfheartedly.

Haera furtively crawls to where Taeyong is and takes a furtive peek at what he’s watching. Though she tried her hardest not to make a noise, for some reason Taeyong still feels her presence and pushes her forehead away with a finger. “Aww, but I wanted to see!”

“Haera, what did I tell you both?” Jaehyun looks at her from where he busies himself with his phone waiting for any update. Their bags are packed and sitting by the door so it’ll be easy to haul it out once they get message to go.

The girl pouts and walks back to her brother that’s contentedly building a small community of Lego houses and people on the floor. Jaehyun spots a Lego dog and can’t help but smile at the sight of it. “Behave, alright? And don’t scatter the Legos. It’ll be hard to pick them up one by one when we go.”

“Where are we going?” Haechan glances at him shortly and returns to entertaining himself with the Legos.

“Back to Paris. I told you earlier, guys.”

“Ah, I forgot.” The boy excuses, now making a tower with assorted colors together with his sister.

Taeyong finishes his second cupcake and washes the bits down his throat with some water. He initially wanted iced choco but before he could have his hands on it, Jaehyun has all but thrown him out of the kitchen and got him a glass of water, and it’s not even cold. How dare he. But for a change, he just drinks it without complaints, like the good man he is.

“What’s up?” Jaehyun grabs a seat and settles down next to the older. “Nothing out of the ordinary?”

“If there was anything out of the ordinary, I wouldn’t be sitting pretty here gagging myself with cupcakes.”

The younger won’t even fight back – he knows that was a stupid conversation starter. “Do you think the enemy’s just waiting for the raid too?”

“That’s the most possible guess. They know the Unione Corse cannot ignore Flavio Ricci. It would be dangerous for them to move without waiting ‘cause it might clash with the previous plan.” Taeyong pushes the cupcake plate to Jaehyun. “I’m full.”

“Good. From now on I’ll watch your diet.” The younger leans in to whisper. “It’s not good to eat unhealthily when you’re using.”

“Quit it. You haven’t seen me use since we went to Paris.”

“Should stay that way.”

Taeyong turns to the sharpshooter, slightly glaring. “Even after years, I still believe you’re not fit for this. Business survives if the entrepreneur personally likes the goods he’s selling. In this case, you’re only into guns. We sell a lot more than that. Tobacco, drugs, alcohol – everything under the sun that can be sold illegally and coincidentally, I’m into the few substances you’re so against me using. You’re a great businessman with a talent for sales talk. But it’s not gonna do it for you if you don’t actually like what you’re selling.”

“I know that. Can you fault me for kindly asking you to use them moderately, though?”

“I’m using them moderately, relax. You’re reverting to that person that caged me because he thought I couldn’t function properly.” Taeyong pats the younger’s head. “You’re doing very well lessening that unlikable trait, though. You want a star?

Jaehyun blinks. “What star?”

“First, you don’t recognize Mean Girls. Second, you don’t know what a star is. Wait here.” The knife thrower leaves his seat, disappearing somewhere to fetch the star he’s talking about. He comes back later on with a colorful stamp and puts a purple star on Jaehyun’s hand. “There!”

The sharpshooter snorts. “What is this for?”

“For being very nice to me.”

“We’re husbands, Taeyong.”

“Not all husbands are nice.” The older says matter-of-factly before approaching the kids and giving them their own star stamps for behaving today. Haera complains of getting only half a star.

He doesn’t return to his seat in front of the computer. The trio discovers a way to bond without fighting each other like cats, through building Legos. Jaehyun transfer to Taeyong’s seat and patiently watches, eyes shifting everywhere to ensure nothing is done before the warning.

Time passes faster when he’s actually occupied that Taeyong nearly forgets what’s about to go down today and is only reminded when his phone vibrates in his pocket.

> _Ten minutes. – UC_

The Lego tower falls and disintegrates when his foot hits it as he quickly returns in front of the computer. Jaehyun’s heart palpitates in his chest while his eyes remain glued to the monitor.

Ten agonizing minutes tick by until it happens.

Sirens are unheard in the camera but they could almost hear that familiar, angry screech of wheels as police cars stop right in front of the casino. One by one they file into the area, breaking through the doors. There are at least five police mobiles there and while most bust in the casino, a few of them remained outside probably waiting for more or to serve as lookouts.

It happens in a snap. From the camera’s view, some cops go around searching for anyone. Both kingpins are aware that there are non-Unione Corse members taking part in the operation that were already briefed to not inflict unnecessary damage in the establishment.

Jaehyun’s eyes are unblinking. He refuses to let his gaze stray. The cops will end up not catching anyone important but the security they already know when to _release_. In spite of this, he’s still nervous as hell, afraid that the plan will fail – how, his mind mercilessly enumerates the scenarios.

Taeyong’s phone buzzes once again just as the cops drag three men out of the casino, their faces shoved to the hood of the cars before getting their hands cuffed.

“They’re going to surround the place with that yellow tape so people know not to trespass.” Taeyong’s face moves closer to the computer as though he’s committing every moment into memory. “Then after taking our men for a scripted interrogation, they’re going to start searching for more evidences that will lead them to the headquarters.”

The younger glances at where the kids are still playing before responding. “Unione Corse is completely supported by their connections, right?”

“Absolutely. Those who are none the wiser will just have to get exasperated with the secrets of the government as to why some things will be a little unclear for them. The media will be called right away. Today they will have nothing much to tell aside from getting an anonymous letter about a sketchy casino.”

“All casinos are sketchy.” Jaehyun sounds breathless from nervousness.

“Exactly. The best inkling the media can pull out of their asses from this is tax evasion and illegal detention.”

Right when illegal detention was said, another man was seen limping out of Red Phoenix as he is escorted by the police.

“I’d have to pay that guy more. He volunteered to pretend to be Andre Caron.”

“I think I missed that during the meeting.”

“Yeah, you were kind of zoning out due to anxiety. It had to be done – since the enemy is specifically expecting that. That being said, we can all expect the media to release Andre Caron’s statement clarifying his situation in the casino.”

His phone buzzes once more, alerting them of a new message from the Unione Corse. Reporters will arrive shortly and only prepared responses will be given. The very evidence that will link Red Phoenix to Invictus has already been put in the casino where it’s not easily seen.

Jaehyun takes the liberty to feed the twins while the first mess is going on. His own phone beeps with messages from the squad asking for updates. He’s too distracted by his own worries to even send a single message and he might snap at them, so never mind. They can wait. They know what’s currently happening anyway.

The twins keep quiet as they eat their sandwiches. Haera wants to know what the adults are seriously watching on the computer but she fears Jaehyun will not go easy on her if she misbehaves again. Haechan has no problems minding his own business.

She’s only curious because Jaehyun is being uncharacteristically quiet and clumsy while Taeyong is behaving as usual. Since they were found by the two, Jaehyun has always been the _normal_ one but today, he’s different, like he can’t keep it together. She finds it unlikable.

It’s fine, though, she thinks. Because she likes Taeyong better anyway.

News spread like wildfire. In a blink of an eye, an influx of different media representatives flock in front of Red Phoenix hoping to make a scoop out of it. At one side, an officer is already being interviewed and it’s obvious that his responses are curt and unsatisfying based on the eagerness and insistence from the reporters.

The officer is a Unione Corse member. There’s always that one articulate cop assigned to answer all the questions from journalists and luckily, he’s a member of one of the two major Corsican groups.

“When are we leaving again?”

“When the chaos declines for today because I still want to see what happens. Give or take at evenfall. They will start chasing the media away and officially locking the casino for further investigation involving Invictus itself – which won’t take long. The latest will be the day after tomorrow.”

“That’s very productive of them.”

“They also wanna catch the culprit, Jaehyun.”

Jaehyun clenches his fists as anger surges through his bloodstream. He can’t wait to _kill_ these daring motherfuckers that do not know where they stand.

Local channels report the raid as soon as they get enough details to make news out of it – even with the curt responses from the authorities, stories have managed to weave themselves into one whole narrative that will keep the people curious and demand updates.

Several articles come out with fiery headlines drilling Red Phoenix of suspected illegal detention of an unnamed French man who is now in the custody of the police. As for the reason why the local law enforcement unit of Bordeaux is not the one that responded, Paris police officer Gabriel Chasse reveals that they are the ones that received the letter from an anonymous sender exposing Red Phoenix casino’s alleged crimes, including kidnapping and tax evasion. A warrant was sent to the owner of the casino, but they received no answer. After being denied, the police decided to head to the casino for the illegal detention accusation might be true after all.

The Bordeaux police department refuses to give any kind of statement to the reporters, explaining that they will have to discuss with the Paris team first.

Media outlets also begin the witch hunt against Red Phoenix owner Ethan Lee by digging through his profile, hoping to open the floodgates for possible secrets that belie the outward innocence of said casino. History of casinos being the lair of numerous criminal acts is retold, implying that the accusations against Red Phoenix are not impossible.

Further investigation will be done as said by the Paris police. The Bordeaux police unit is not safe from interrogation as their lack of knowledge and the anonymous confessor’s decision to report in Paris instead of the casino’s base puts the cops of Bordeaux in a bad light.

The journalists try to get ahold of the man found in one of the vacant rooms in the casino but the police deny them access, as the man is said to be traumatized by the sudden chaos. Since they cannot get answers from the man at the moment, reports collectively hypothesized that the reason why he’s kept is due to a personal dispute with Ethan Lee, who’s said to be out of the country and currently unreachable.

With nothing much to speculate from the sudden operation, articles and television news reports can only come up with a question – will the French government actually get through the bottom of this issue this time? Given its reputation in failing to give justice even to the smallest of offenses, people doubt its capability now. Corruption is rich in the continent of Europe – these purported offenses committed by Red Phoenix is only one of the many issues the country is yet to solve.

Evenfall finally arrives and with the confirmation from Unione Corse that the evidence leading to the existence of Invictus is finally planted in Red Phoenix, Taeyong turns off the computer and orders everyone to head out of the residential building through the VIP exit. There should be no problem being seen by the security leaving because since the beginning of his stay there, they’ve been receiving payment to keep mum about what they see and hear.

Not a single of photo of Ethan Lee can be found online even if one searches the company he owns. To prevent the reporters from targeting the company, the security team has been ordered to be quiet regarding the situation. The employees are free to talk, but they cannot bear the possible consequences of saying a word that might tarnish their boss’ image to the public. They literally know nothing of Ethan Lee being a mob anyway.

Besides, he’s not convicted /yet/. No one has the rights to release his photo to the public, nor a bit of information about his husband. Right now, they are both safe from the hawk eyes of civilians.

Flying to Paris is not an option so even if it’s going to be a long, tiring drive, the only way to get to the capital without garnering unwanted attention is by car. Jaehyun takes the passenger seat with the twins settled in the back.

The drive is continuous. Jaehyun knows they cannot even stop for a quick takeout so he made sure to pack dinner for the twins who fortunately have nothing to say about it. The almost six-hour drive is extended by half an hour or more, Taeyong has stopped counting in his head. It’s a rainy night, cold and the traffic has slowed.

When they finally get to Paris, asses almost numb from sitting for over six hours, the knife thrower scans the messages sent by Unione Corse. They only say that the not more than five cops are stationed at the casino to guard. The backdoor is free so that the enemy can find their way in should they decide to come out soon.

“You should probably call Fort now.”

“We can just go there without telling him.”

“Still,” Jaehyun stresses. “He owns the place. Even if you’re a member, you can’t just waltz in and out whenever you want. Even more when we got kids with us. I don’t think he’s _that_ generous for just about anyone to take their children to Garnet.”

Taeyong curses inaudibly as he stops at the nearest emergency bay and presses Jung Yunho’s contact.

“And they’re not my children.”

The line goes busy twice. It’s past midnight now and if his calculations are correct, it’s only six in the evening where Fort is. Taeyong spits a few more curses and at the third try, the call finally gets through.

_“Taeyong. I was at a meeting. Is this about the raid? I saw the news.”_

He hears some paper rustling from the other line.

“Yes. Thankfully they went when the casino’s close for the day.” Blue, ice cold eyes gaze through the rearview mirror, checking the two tiny sleeping forms. “Invictus might be next – I’m not taking chances by staying at the penthouse. This whole thing is fucking ridiculous. I don’t know how the cops knew.”

_“You could speculate a lot from this. This must be terrible for you and Jaehyun. Where are you going?”_

“We’re in the middle of a highway. Hey, since we can’t stay in Bordeaux for the meantime and I basically lied to the police saying I’m not in France, I was hoping we could stay in Garnet–”

_“You can’t.”_

The response from the Garnet leader is immediate, taking Taeyong by surprise. He knows that what he’s asking for is a little unusual, but the way the other denied him accommodation even though he’s literally a part of the gang seems off.

Taeyong’s gaze does not change, nor his expression. Nothing in him gives away the slight vexation he feels for being denied a small favor. He’s not used to asking; it wounds his pride. Getting everything he wants as easy as 1 2 3 has always been his lifestyle.

“Why not? Garnet is the safest place for us–”

Even if he doesn’t hear what Fort said, Jaehyun knows the answer from Taeyong’s reaction. He bites back a sigh as he looks at his other side, watching the raindrops hit the window and race down the door.

_“I understand your plight, Taeyong. But I hope you also understand where I’m coming from. The police have seized Red Phoenix. One of these days they’re gonna get to Invictus. I may be paying the police department in Paris to steer clear of Garnet but I can’t be too sure. Everything can happen. We are literally business partners. Why don’t you head to 20 th Arrondissement?”_

He almost tells Fort that the hideout there belongs to Invictus but ultimately remembers it’s technically owned by Red Phoenix and none of the hideouts of their previous organization is registered under Invictus. Taeyong runs a hand through his hair, gripping it before nodding. “Alright. I get it. This is our problem.”

_“I can offer financial assistance if you need this swept under the rug.”_

“Not taking us in is fine although I’m also a part of your group but I have money, okay? If I need to erase all of my traces and wake up tomorrow with a completely new background, I’m gonna splurge on it. Keep your coins to yourself.”

Silence stretches from the other line for several seconds before Fort speaks again. “ _Okay. I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience, Taeyong. Also, even if I let you in Garnet, it’s practically dead. It’ll only bore you and Jaehyun. Do you have the twins with you?”_

Taeyong grunts softly. “Of course, where the fuck do we leave these gremlins?” A chuckle echoes through the phone and the knife thrower’s eyes roll at Fort’s audacity to find it funny. “What do you mean the headquarters is dead?”

_“I mean, since I’m staying here in America for some time, I can’t monitor the local and international business. Max is also here with me so one will take care of the transactions. They’re all postponed until I get back. This new project I’m monitoring requires my full attention. So most of the facilities in the headquarters are closed.”_

“You mean the whole building’s devoid of souls?” Taeyong glances out the window. “That actually sounds great to me.”

_“Don’t be absurd. Some of my men are still going to be there to inspect goods yet to be dispatched. Taeyong, if the issue is still ongoing when I return, then maybe I can take you in. It’s too risky to do it right now since I’m not there in case things take a turn for the worse. But for now, you should find somewhere else to stay…”_

The Garnet leader’s apologetic tone cannot be unheard. Taeyong wordlessly accepts the sincere apology and reassures the other kingpin he understands, soon hanging up after a typical, grouchy _‘yeah, sure’._

“I take it you got rejected?” Jaehyun looks at the knife thrower.

The car wheels out of the emergency bay after Taeyong enters the address of the hideout for directions. “Unbelievably so. Fort is worried he’d get involved if the cops trace us.”

The sharpshooter shifts in his seat, puzzled. “He doesn’t know the real deal? Why didn’t you tell him?”

“Why would we tell him? It’s not his business. Let him think it’s real. I was planning to explain it when we settle in but it sounds like he won’t be available for a while. I know Unione Corse won’t release anything that will drag our associates but the guy’s paranoid because he’s not here. Forget it. We’re still staying in Paris since our only clue to Dragonaire was seen here.”

“How sure are we that we’ll catch Dragonaire here?”

“There’s a reason why they took Irina Caron to Paris and not anywhere else. They probably know about the glaring lack of Unione Corse members to fool in Bordeaux. Besides, if they’re gonna be idiots for the second time around, what’s a better place to do it in full swing if not in the most overrated city in France?”

Jaehyun smiles and rests his arm on the door, thumbing his lower lip as he faces the road. “Yeah, it’s like…treating yourself with the best the world can offer before you die.”

And he will make sure these imbeciles will never see another day. Come what may, all the things he can do to make them suffer, to make them beg for forgiveness, to make them regret even thinking of breathing again, he will do it. He’s done pitying those that do not deserve it. He is done storing compassion he shouldn’t even have. It’s time to shred the last inch of humanity in him.

If they want ruthless, they will get it.

Settling in the old hideout in the 20th Arrondissement almost feels like coming back home from how frequent they used it before. Since the day Invictus has cemented its status in the French mob, it’s been neglected, forgotten together with the funeral of Red Phoenix’s final memories.

Dust blankets the surface like a natural layer. The twins both cover the lower half of their faces so as not to inhale it. Jaehyun quickly locks the door, closes the curtain and leads them to one of the rooms which is, unfortunately, as dusty as the rest of the house.

“Well,” he starts while scratching his head, “Go stay in the living room first and you can get in when I finish sweeping.”

“And mopping!” Haechan says before running back to the living room with his sister. Without much choice to choose from, as the dirt will not disappear on its own even if he glares at it, Jaehyun looks for a broom as well as mop to soak in the bathroom.

Haera stands next to the couch. They can’t sit on it. It’s dirty. Everything is so dirty! She swipes a finger on the armrest and ends up with a gray finger pad, disgustedly wiping it down her shorts. “Is this your house too? Why is it so dirty?”

“Because they don’t live here anymore. The big house is so much better than this.” Haechan answers and looks at Taeyong. “Why didn’t we go to a hotel?”

“It’s safer here, gremlins.” He drags a stool and dusts it off with a hankie as much as he can before sitting down and occupying himself with his phone. “We don’t have money anymore that’s why we left the penthouse. Here, we don’t have to pay much.”

“Are you serious?” The little girl pouts at the thought of not returning to the penthouse. “I think this house will look pretty after it’s cleaned.”

“I’ll call for a housecleaner tomorrow. Jaehyun will finish cleaning your room quickly and you can go to sleep then.” Taeyong responds calmly without his typically sarcastic language. A frown ruins the handsome features of the knife thrower as he scrolls through messages. As of now, nothing is particularly alarming.

Half an hour later, the bedroom clean enough for the kids to use, Jaehyun calls for them. He changes the sheets with the spare blanket they brought and lays a few plushies to be their makeshift pillows for the night. The curtain is removed as well since it may spread more dust when the wind blows in and replaces with the towel they got from Disneyland.

“There are more rooms here if you want to sleep separately, but they all need to be cleaned and sanitized tomorrow. This room will be sanitized too. So wake up early and take a shower, hm?” Jaehyun rolls the curtain and makes way to the door when Haechan asks something.

“Jaehyun, did you have a fight with someone?”

The question makes him stop and think if the twins realized what’s going on. But they couldn’t have understood everything in such a young age. “What makes you think that?”

“Because Taeyong said it’s safe here and then said the hotels are expensive. The Disneyland was expensive too but you didn’t get scared enough to stay here instead of the hotel.” Haechan purses his lips before sliding under the blanket and pillowing his head with a plush toy.

Their thought process never fails to amaze Jaehyun. For someone his age, Haechan’s reasoning could make Jaehyun reconsider his answers.

He has sworn earlier to shred the last bit of what makes a person, good in the eyes of society but these kids do not deserve to be treated poorly. He has lied to them since the beginning, he has practically given them an image that is not true, altered the reality they’re supposed to know. Maybe, it won’t hurt to be a little honest even just for tonight.

Jaehyun leans against the doorway, hands clenching and unclenching around the rolled bed sheets and curtain. “It’s very complicated right now and it’ll better for you not to go out until we deem it okay. To be clear, I didn’t have a fight with anyone–Actually, it’s been a long time since that huge fight but some people don’t forget. So they keep coming back. Don’t worry, though. If Taeyong said you’re safe, then you are. I’ll make sure you are.”

“Will you protect us?”

Jaehyun doesn’t hesitate. “I will.”

_No father would put their child in danger._

_How heroic,_ the demon says. _Just wait until they know the tru–_

“Will Taeyong protect us?” Haechan’s voice shoots the demon in his head right through the heart, and he couldn’t be more glad. “One for you and one for him because Haera likes him.”

It cheers him up a little, laughing softly at what the kids said. He thought he was the only one who noticed the girl’s attachment to the knife thrower. “Yeah, one for him and one for me. One hand will fight the bad guys and the other will protect you.”

Satisfied with what Jaehyun said, the boy finally closes his eyes and hugs his already sleeping twin. “Good. If Taeyong protects my sister, then I guess I can like him too.”

When Jaehyun closes the door behind him, he realizes that the boy can finally say the knife thrower’s name without fear emanating off of his tiny body.

_It’s not impossible. The family I want is not impossible._

The whole place has been cleaned when the clock hits 10 in the morning. Jaehyun volunteers getting something from the nearest restaurant – it’s not anything amazing, but it will do for now until they refill the fridge.

Taeyong locks himself up in their bedroom right after washing up and taking his own share of food. It’s an unspoken agreement not to disturb him from waiting for some news coming from Unione Corse. While Jaehyun busies himself with sending mails to the employees, assuring them that their boss is not involved in any of the accusations being thrown, Taeyong holds a phone in his hand and watches the news.

And it’s all worth losing sleep for two days in a row. The Unione Corse supplements the media with the made up lies they agreed on releasing to the public. The fraud Andre Caron is not a hostage, but a homeless man that begged the owner of Red Phoenix to stay in the building when it’s close. The room he was found in is where he usually sleeps until the guard or a utility personnel asks him to go. He’s limping because of fatigue, and that he’s begging the reporters to stop making up stories demonizing the kind casino owner that let him take shelter in Red Phoenix for free. He has agreed to be taken for a psychological checkup when asked by a reporter, and Andre Caron confirms that he’s telling nothing but the truth. He will be released after giving one last testimony.

Paris police department also supplemented the media with the clarification of Ethan Lee’s name. They checked his records and found it to be a clean slate. They also discovered that Ethan Lee is a regular donor to charities, especially orphanages and local projects. This information is given by the mayor of Bordeaux who volunteered to help in preventing the ruining of a friend’s reputation _just because of people that have nothing better to do_ , in his words. Tax evasion is also debunked from the numerous rumors formed by speculating journalists themselves as the officials claim to have checked records.

With the two main accusations dismissed from the raid of Red Phoenix, the letter received by the police is seen as sent by a troll or a possible business competitor, labeling it as a personal attack. They will not be taking action to find the source of the letter due to two reasons – first, the letter contains no origin address and second, if Ethan Lee doesn’t file a complaint then the person the anonymous sender will stay unknown.

But even though Red Phoenix is technically safe from having its permit to operate terminated, Ethan Lee is not yet completely absolved as the cops ‘found’ drug paraphernalia beneath one of the tables inside the club. It is not a surprise to find remains of illegal drugs that were successfully brought inside entertainment establishments like casinos as club goers tend to intoxicate themselves to maximize the _high_. What’s peculiar about the paraphernalia is the word _Invictus_ printed to it. Smalltime drug dealers do not put any clue in their goods. Going by that, it means that the drug used was bought from a huge personality in the underground market.

Jaehyun lightly knocks on the door and quietly slips in. Taeyong is still stuck in front of the television, his bowl already empty.

“What did they say?” Truthfully, Jaehyun is scared in spite of knowing they will not be totally exposed. He’s done emailing the employees of their growing company and it is stressful to say the least. There’s still dread gnawing at him, the cause of his recent sleeping troubles.

“Red Phoenix is safe. But I’m not, accordingly. The evidence was already found and they will be looking for the headquarters soon. How they’re going to find it, we already gave them the freedom to do it as they wish.” Taeyong looks much too relaxed for someone being accused of crimes left and right. The sharpshooter won’t be flabbergasted if Taeyong actually finds it _thrilling_ to be thrown behind bars.

But Jaehyun is still wondering since the plan was formed. Why is it only Taeyong suffering from this?

“I can hear your thoughts.” Taeyong peels his eyes away from the TV and looks at his husband. “As long as it can be helped, I won’t let them dirty your name. I use a lot of names here, Jaehyun. I can give them as many identities as they want; the papers are ready to be printed if they want proofs. Within those months I stayed here and you were in Korea, I worked on it. Because I knew this day would come and I can’t let them destroy what you’ve built.” He turns back to the TV and watches even as the news is over and a local drama is showing. Jaehyun feels a hand cover his and at the same time, warmth cooling his heart frozen with fear, allowing it to beat with life.

“I will literally put my life on the line for you, Jaehyun.”

“Don’t.” The younger whispers shakily. He can’t imagine a life without Taeyong. Not anymore. He has forgotten what it feels like not to have the other by his side and he doesn’t wish to remember. He would hate to be reminded. “We have Unione Corse’s word. Whoever this enemy is, they’re going to offer themselves to us and _you_ will end it for them. I don’t mind not having a hand in it. Just…don’t let them end it for you.”

_Why are you so self-sacrificing, Taeyong? Always want to take the bull by the horns alone. Be it for your own gain or whatnot. But not this time; I won’t let you be the best that you are this time._

As he makes that silent promise, he recalls the nightmare he had on the first night of their trip to Disneyland. He sees Taeyong again, standing in that red puddle. Undoubtedly, those dead bodies by his feet are the twins’, and he also remembers the feeling of breathing his last.

But it’s only now that he sees that Taeyong is actually soaked from head to toe. Jaehyun is uncertain whether it’s a detail he missed or his mind playing tricks on him as caused by stress. He has no idea what it all signifies, but if it is indeed a premonition, then he’s going to do everything in his might to stop it from happening.

“Where are you going?”

Taeyong puts his black hair up in a messily tied bun, cloth mask around the lower half of his face. He’s obviously dressed for something more important than grocery shopping like he said an hour ago. In tight pants, red shirt and black blazer, he makes it look like he’s hitting the streets to get casted instead.

“Get your ears checked, dimple boy. I’m stocking the fridge like I said. You have no one else to do it for you.” He grabs his wallet to double-check its content before sneaking up behind Jaehyun and reading the mails the younger has been typing. “You good?”

“Not really.” Jaehyun looks over the message for the nth time and hits send before dropping his head down the table, the action making a soft thump as his forehead hits the cold surface. “The clients want the goods _now._ I kind of wanna slap them one by one but I get where they’re coming from. All that money for delayed shipments? If I were these demanding people, I’d be swearing at Invictus too.”

Hearing what the problem seems to be, Taeyong shrugs and pulls his mask down to pop a candy in his mouth, rolling it around with his tongue. “They can’t blame you and you can’t blame them. It’s annoying at the very least but just keep sending them what you’ve already sent until they understand. Some brains don’t work as fast as yours.”

“That’s so understanding of you.” Jaehyun teases, turning his face to the side to watch Taeyong frown at his phone. “What is it? Did they say something?”

“It ain’t Unione Corse. I’m looking for the nearest supermarket. Something might happen so you better turn the TV on instead. Pretty sure at the end of this day they’re gonna ‘spot’ Invictus.” The knife thrower nods at whatever he’s reading on his phone before slipping the gadget inside the blazer, turning towards Jaehyun. “You bought a lot yesterday so give that to the gremlins.”

“Will you be alright shopping alone? Do you know what kind of meat to buy? Don’t get whatever your eyes see first; make sure to buy what fits the food you wanna cook.”

Taeyong’s face crumples. “Do you think I’m dumb? I know how supermarkets work. Plus they’re going to bother me anyway and suggest all these meat I don’t know. I’ll let them do it.” Shaking his head at the younger’s overthinking, he makes his way to the door only to look at Jaehyun again. “And you’re cooking.”

Jaehyun’s protests fall on deaf ears as Taeyong exits the house, makes a show of revving the car loudly and then smoothly maneuvering out of the driveway. As the man who can distract him albeit annoyingly is gone, the sharpshooter goes back to reading new mails and grumpily replying to every single one of them.

He might have even copy-pasted some messages. If they notice the mistakes on the details of items, fuck it. Jaehyun will give them his go-to excuse: a minor glitch.

It’s always easy to lie to Jaehyun because one, he’s a good actor and it’s like a default in his personality and two, the grocery shopping thing is party true anyway.

Did his husband really think that after that ugly fight and almost three days of being locked up in the practice room would miraculously make him drop the possibility that Olivia is alive? Now that he’s back in Paris and they’ll be stuck in the capital for god knows how long, why not make use of it and start hunting her down? Taeyong knows she’s alive. His heart knows the woman wearing that mascot at Walt Disney Park is his sister.

Though honestly, he only thought of looking for her last night. It didn’t cross his mind when they decided to hide in Paris while Invictus is being ‘raided’. The ongoing war against the yet to be seen enemy occupied his mind, even the deepest and most rotten parts of it.

If he’s not mistaken, his sister definitely works at the park. She can’t be wearing that hideous costume if she’s not an employee. Taeyong swears that when he finds her, he’s going to demand answers to the questions he’s been hearing even in his sleep since the second their eyes met.

It’s a 50-minute drive from the hideout to Euro Disney Associes SAS in Chessy. Taeyong is not sure whether this is the head office or not, but it’s where Google lead him when he searched for the amusement park’s office. They should know all of the people working in the parks.

He parks at the side of the street and quickly gets off, jogging to the entrance of the building. Just to be sure, Taeyong pulls up his mask as he reaches the information desk at the lobby.

“Je cherche Olivia Lee.” (“ _I’m looking for Olivia Lee”_ ). He asks the receptionists, straight to the point. The woman behind the desk asks for his name and Taeyong tells her the Korean one.

“Olivia Lee? There is no Olivia Lee in this building, sir.” The receptionist must’ve thought he’s not a native so she switches to English, politely telling him the result of her search in the database. “Are you sure she’s working here?”

Oh, right. As expected, the receptionist is going to look for an employee of the Euro Disney itself. Taeyong leans against the desk, one arm on top of it as he drums his fingers. “Yes, but no. I mean she works in Disneyland. You can check the name there for me, right?”

The respectful tone of his voice almost makes him want to vomit. He has no choice but to be well-mannered if he wants to find what he’s looking for. The covert knife strapped under his shirt can be taken out any second to hasten the deal but perfectly knowing it’s not gonna end up well, Taeyong just feels its warmth against his skin and sighs, keeping up the front in the guise of a civilized person – it happens once in a blue moon. Might as well do it in full swing.

_So this is how it feels like to be a stickler for the rules._

The woman raises a brow and leans forward with a look of suspicion. “You know employee information, whether the boss’ or the utility person’s is private, right, sir? I am not confirming the existence of an Olivia Lee working for us unless this is urgent and by urgent, it still depends if it’s reasonable.”

She tries her best to remain courteous even though her expression is starting to crack and show the slightest irritation. The lady must be thinking he’s an idiot for not having a common sense. But fuck common sense – he’s looking for the sister he left 11 years ago, the person who’s supposed to be dead but obviously alive, for ambiguous reasons.

“I have a _reasonable_ reason, okay? Can you call a manager? Anyone?”

“It’s a Saturday, sir. The higher-ups are not here.”

 _1 2 3,_ it counts in his head thrice, something he learned in the psychiatric facility when the urge to _break_ looms over. Taeyong purses his lips and pulls out his wallet. “Olivia Lee is my sister, if it ain’t very plain to see from the similar surnames.”

The woman moves away with a sigh and just as he expected, asks for his ID. Ethan Lee is still a person of interest now that a piece of Invictus has been ‘found’ in Red Phoenix’s club. The ID contains a photo of him, not recent, and his Korean name. It would’ve been shady otherwise.

Taeyong shows the lady his face for matching.

“She hasn’t been coming home for the past two weeks and I was under the impression that she was with her boyfriend. But the guy said they haven’t seen each other for a month. I just want to make sure if she’s still working in Walt Disney Studios Park.” That’s one good ass lie. The nerve to play the doting brother.

And two weeks? How severely understated.

Impatiently taping his finger, Taeyong watches the receptionist work on the computer. He doesn’t need to wait longer than that as she faces the monitor to him and shows _Olivia Lee_ ’s record, photo censored.

Bingo.

“We have a girl working in one of the parks with the name you’ve given. You must understand that I cannot show you more than this because this is illegal and I only did this because she seems to be missing. Sir, I hope you are not thinking of doing anything funny because aside from I’m gonna get fired, _you and I_ will go to jail.” She slides his ID back to him. Taeyong knows she has input his name in their records.

 _It couldn’t be that easy for her to give me what I want knowing the consequences. Ah, humans. Easily attracted._ _Willing to jeopardize themselves for something temporary._

The knife thrower keeps his mouth shut as he puts his ID back into his wallet, right next to another ID with _Ethan Lee_ on it. He says his thanks as sincere as he can, swearing to come back to thank her again when he finds out what his rebellious sister has been up to.

“You’re my savior, I swear to god.” Taeyong adds and leans forward again. “Did she put an emergency contact there?”

The receptionist shakes her head. “No.”

“As expected. She’s the black sheep of the family. Here,” Taeyong drops a thick roll of bills on her lap. “Keep quiet and make sure to cut this on the CCTV, or else…” He says, neck-slicing, before finally exiting the building with the burning gaze of the receptionist on his back.

The office building is only around 5 kilometers away from the second theme park. The short drive to Disneyland brings him mixed thoughts and emotions he cannot name. He might not even be feeling anything at all. Knowing his sister is within reach, _real,_ and not just a figment of his imagination any longer makes him want to laugh.

“Oh, Jaehyun. How wrong of you to tell me I was delusional.”

The parking lot is almost full when he arrives. The ticketing takes fifteen minutes at most under the warm rays of the sun with the familiar but deafening screeches of children coming from all directions. Rainy days are far from over but today’s weather seems to be in his convenience – though even if it storms right then and there, Taeyong will not come home without catching a glimpse of Olivia.

He knows it’s her. He might have not seen her broken finger, the optimal proof of her identity, but he’s absolutely certain it’s Olivia. There was a look of recognition in her eyes when she fell and looked up at him that day.

But why did she run away?

When he ran away from home, they were in bad terms. It was entirely his fault – since the beginning, there was only him to blame. Taeyong didn’t want her to enjoy life because he was not allowed to. If he couldn’t be free, then why could she? Isn’t it the way it was supposed to be? But Olivia didn’t understand him. None of them did.

Once he gets in, he’s hit with nostalgia. Whether he admits it out loud or not, the trip with Jaehyun and the gremlins was a great way to escape the customary framework of his life. He has half a mind to redo the memories until his real intention why he’s even there in the first place shoves him to a sudden halt.

Taeyong turns around and heads for the Walt Disney Studios Park, casually walking, taking his time.

She’s not going anywhere.

Yes, he might be a little obsessed with his sister, but that’s only because she’s the first person he had been invested with. It might be because they share the same blood that he has this strong attachment towards her. There’s nothing more to it. She’s someone that will make his life a little less boring, a little more meaningful. Together with Jaehyun, they’re going to make sense of Taeyong’s existence.

He goes to the last ride they had been on before the shooting and the chaos that ensued. Taeyong sits on the same bench the twins sat on, remained there for _hours_ without moving. A few people have already noticed, those that go back and forth for unlimited rides, asking themselves why this man is trying to be a statue. The knife thrower has no qualms proving to them that they’re right. He is indeed trying to be one with the bench he’s on. Maybe he’s meditating in the middle of a noisy crowd. Who knows? Not a single one of these nosy bastards.

He’s counting, of course. Three hours. He’s been away from Jaehyun for over four. The younger must be worried sick now and he’s not simply assuming. The repeated buzzing of his phone says so. Taeyong sighs and pulls it out, sees the _thirty_ unopened messages and _thirty_ missed calls. So typical of Jaehyun to call after texting.

One of the messages, the very first one which came in is what Taeyong chooses to reply to.

> _Oi, dimple boy! Sorry (not sorry) but I’m quite enjoying my newest hobby – supermarket hopping. U read that right. There’s some flu going around said the butchers. So I’m driving here and there to look for the bestest fish instead. I hope the tiny ass gremlins like seafood. If they don’t, throw them out. Don’t worry. My limbs are still intact.- T_

Not even a second later, the phone rings.

“Hello–”

_“LEE TAEYONG. WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?”_

Taeyong puts the phone away and picks his ear. “Not even Léonie screamed at me like this before, you know.”

_“That’s because you were not allowed to go out, dumbass! Where are you? What supermarket hopping?”_

Jaehyun is indeed furious. It’s almost funny. Does he think it’ll be _that_ easy for someone like Taeyong to get kidnapped, killed? Is the younger really screaming at the same man who was dubbed more dangerous than the enemy?

But Taeyong can only let his husband preach about safety and how counterproductive the knife thrower is behaving.

 _“You can’t be supermarket hopping when we went here to hide, Taeyong. I know Unione Corse got our back and Flavio Ricci even promised to involve Brise de Mer if push comes to shove but!”_ Jaehyun breathes in, out, does it a few times and continues with a gentler tone. _“But can you please get your ass back here now? Buy whatever you want, forget what I said earlier. It’s been more than four hours.”_

“Goddamn it, Jaehyun. Do you hear yourself? You’re talking like I can’t handle it if something happens. And I’m literally around mothers buying shrimp–”

_“What shrimp? I hear a kid saying Buzz Lightyear. Where are you?”_

“You know what, I’m not even mad or anything because you are actually considering the possibility I’d die just like that. And there’s a kid here talking about Buzz Lightyear! Can’t he talk to his mom about movies in between rows of frozen fish heads and cow guts?” Taeyong pinches the bridge of his nose and shifts in his seat. He can’t deny his ass is getting numb. “Give me two more hours.”

Jaehyun is about to ramble when Taeyong hangs up. The younger can bear with it for two more hours. They can properly fight in person when Taeyong gets home. Seriously, the younger has gotten so clingy after the wedding. Is this what marriage does to people?

Taeyong can’t go home just like that. He’s here for a very specific and important reason. Not like he could tell the other. Not like Jaehyun would understand. He’s not in the mood for another fight about how delusional he is.

Hundreds of people have walked past him but none of them is Olivia. That costume she was wearing hasn’t even made an appearance for the past three hours. Where the hell could she be?

“She’s probably somewhere around and I won’t see her if I don’t get my ass over there. Correct. You’re so smart, Taeyong. You’re so smart.” With a pat on his shoulder to commend himself for his intelligence, Taeyong finally gets up, back crying out in relief, and begins wandering around.

He spends the next thirty minutes scanning the crowd, making quick trips to shops and restaurants before deciding to go to the first park. She might be there. Her job might require her to switch between the two parks.

Taeyong creates the pattern in his head. When did he see her again? What day was it? He should see her around Disneyland Paris’ main park.

But even after going through the different _lands,_ he still doesn’t catch even a glimpse of her hair strand.

The two hours he gave Jaehyun finishes just like that. He can stay until 10 in the evening, until the guards literally drag him out of the park if he wants to _and_ he wants to, but what plausible excuse is he going to give his paranoid husband?

_Marriage is like a cage, indeed. But not for all the romantic aspects it proclaims._

He walks out of Disneyland. Maybe, Olivia is not working today. Maybe she’s part-timing.

_Maybe she quit that day she ran away._

Taeyong rips the mask away from his face and walks back to his car, slamming the door close.

Fuck it. He has all the time in the world. He’ll come back. If he needs to go through hell and back to find his sister, he will. It’s just like passing through a humble abode.

Jaehyun is ready to explode, to bark at Taeyong to the point of getting kicked out but when he sees the state of the other as soon as he enters, like he was crushed underneath the heavy burdens of the world, the sharpshooter thinks twice.

Instead, he points out the lack of grocery bags Taeyong’s arms are supposed to carry.

“Where are the groceries, Taeyong?”

He only receives silence for a minute. Maybe longer than that, but Jaehyun doesn’t notice. Staring at the other’s side profile, he just keeps quiet, waiting for the other to explain.

Taeyong, aside from the cold expression on his face, doesn’t look hurt anywhere. There are no traces of assault. In any case, if there was indeed a fight, the other party would bear all the evidences of it.

“Any news about Invictus?”

“Uh, they contact you, not me…”

“Right. They said they’re going there tonight. Details will come out tomorrow so watch the news.”

“Oh…okay.”

“They were stolen.”

“What?”

Taeyong finally moves and stares Jaehyun in the eyes, face blank as a paper. “The groceries. It was stolen. Half of it was stolen and the half of them, I gave away to the beggars. Because I can’t bear the thought of petty thieves one-upping me, I just fed the homeless. But it made me feel like shit because it’s such a nice thing to do. It’s so unlike me. Do I look distraught?”

Jaehyun gapes like a fish out of water. “Yeah, you do…”

“Great. I am so distraught because they thought I was heaven sent. They have no idea where I really came from. Satan must be so disappointed in me. He must think I paid homage to the wrong lord.” Taeyong begins to sob, covering his mouth with a hand as he dramatically cries out his regrets while the sharpshooter is left watching and thinking if he should go along. “I can’t stomach this, Jaehyun. My spine literally says the evil is among us and it’s _me_ but what did I do? I can’t take this, I’m sorry.”

He’s still trying to come up with something comforting to say when the door of their bedroom closes with a bang as Taeyong rushes inside, the slam loud enough to disturb the twins playing in their shared room. Their tiny heads poke out to check what it is.

What…just happened?

Jaehyun blinks a few times and slowly looks at his phone.

Maybe he should ask the housecleaner nicely to do their grocers for them too?

Invictus is finally located by midnight, according to the message from one of the paid cops. A few photos that have been sneakily snapped are sent to Taeyong. There’s a bunch of police surrounding the area. This time, the Bordeaux unit is involved but they’re now aware of the truth behind the incursion of the mafia group they are actually hiding. The mayor of Bordeaux received a message from Taeyong explaining the situation, which the former acted on immediately.

France, at this point, could rival any of the countries in the top 10 most corrupt. Money definitely is the grand ruler of men.

God, any version of him, only comes second.

The detailed news comes out the next day, as hinted by Unione Corse.

Through an anonymous whistleblower that ‘volunteered’ to expose some details, Invictus is one of the main sources of high end, affordable illegal drugs being sold in the black market nowadays. Drugs might not be the only goods the group is selling, but the whistleblower only had a firsthand experience with buying drugs from someone he believes is a direct seller.

Paris and Bordeaux police units did a quick stakeout of the building before the raid. From their observation, no other activities were done by the men found outside the building aside from inspecting boxes that contain heavy bags of powdered drugs. A few of them are in liquid form while the others are already made into tablets.

Not more than 10 men are caught and now taken for interrogation. The whole building has been seized as well for the cops to inspect more items the group is selling illegally.

Invictus does not disappoint. Inside of the drug den are weapons, animal skins and smuggled electronics from China. All floors and rooms are also searched. A chilling evidence of another nauseating crime is found in what looks to be a meeting room and on the board is a list of countries that will receive the men and women labeled as _goods_ in the never-ending saga of human trafficking.

Desks reveal papers of transactions, contracts leading to the possible leader of the group: _Elliot De la Croix._

All of the files confiscated have the same name on them. As per the recipients of products, they are codes that can only be interpreted by members of the mob. For now, since there are no signs of Ethan Lee in all the papers, the police give their word of assurance that the man is innocent for the time being.

Numerous reports regarding the illegal transactions come to a similar end – this horrendous crime is too profound, scrupulously organized beyond comprehension and its leader is one, powerful vile man.

_“To be able to hide in plain sight, close to the quiet suburb, and perform these sinister acts, Invictus is no less than the physical home of Lucifer on Earth.” – France Today_

Further reports come out on the next day. The Unione Corse purposely divides information to be released, not too slow yet not too fast so that no one will be tempted into looking into the case on their own and ruining the plans. The media have sensationalized the existence of Invictus to the point Bordeaux has been dubbed the new hub of syndicates, giving it a frightening reputation behind the picturesque sceneries and culture of the city.

With the absence of any threat, activity and any form of communication from the mob running the Invictus headquarters, the police conclude that they are already in hiding and leaving the whole establishment including the items costing millions and millions of Euro to the hands of the law. Computers in the building are accessed for more clues that will unhide the identities of these big-time gangsters but yet again, only codes are found. Decrypting the data is useless as the raw files still successfully conceal the recipients of the items being sold by Invictus. There must be a pattern in these codes that require manual decoding that can only be done by the mobsters themselves.

Jaehyun is seated in front of the TV in their room, focused on the news as Taeyong enters wrapped only in a towel hanging low around his hips, clearly freshly showered.

“Are you going out?”

“Can’t I shower without meaning to go out?” The knife thrower throws back a question that doesn’t really answer anything and quickly gets dressed in the same fashion as yesterday’s.

The younger chooses not to let the ambiguity get to him and turns up the TV’s volume. “They logged into the computers easily since we deactivated the password. I’m just wondering…they are releasing some data to the public to explain how underground transactions are done. None of this will link them to the Korean base, right?”

Taeyong zips his pants close and sits unceremoniously in bed, towel drying his hair. “I guarantee you that the French team is just as efficient as the team you left in Korea. This whole raid thing could happen to anyone no matter how many the connections made within the government so the day I began manning the HQ in Bordeaux, I told them to create a version of transaction records that only we can decode. Those codes the cops are talking about, they’re real. Show me a code and I’ll tell you what the item is, who the buyer is and where the item’s sent. On top of that, the day before Invictus was ‘caught’, they already modified the system.”

He tosses the towel to the chair nearby and finger-combs his hair, azure eyes finding Jaehyun’s black ones. “Meaning to say, all data from Invictus KR does not exist here. The system was cut in half in the literal sense. They’re going to meet a quick dead end with searching records. That also means that _you_ do not exist here. That’s why the news only mentioned one name and that is the name I asked them to put in the fabricated records. They will never know a thing about Invictus Korea and its kingpin. Now say thank you, Ethan.”

“Thank you.” Jaehyun surprises the other with his quick and sincere compliance. Taeyong stops combing his hair and scoots closer to the younger, tipping Jaehyun’s chin so their faces are mere centimeters apart.

“You’re welcome. Don’t you mind that they will think I am the only leader of Invictus? Technically, I’m an extra. An extra still better than you, and second in name alone. It doesn’t bother you?”

Taeyong is testing him, testing how his provocation will make the sharpshooter react. The thought of not being acknowledged in France when his second purpose after pushing Invictus to being a first-rate in Korea was to build a name in Europe should be degrading, but Jaehyun can only thank Taeyong at the moment. He doesn’t have the right to feel insulted right now when Taeyong erasing his existence in France is the only reason why he is not being hunted down. Belatedly realizing that Taeyong is literally the only one risking it all for the sake of protecting Jaehyun and the sacrifices he made for Invictus, Jaehyun lowers his head in shame, chuckles and grips the front of his husband’s shirt.

Sounding a little broken, he repeatedly says thank you. He thanks Taeyong so many times that he loses count until a rough hand cups his jaw and forces him into a kiss just to shut him up.

Taeyong wants to see Jaehyun worship him, be grateful for him, wants the other to think that Taeyong will always be better because one, it’s a fact and two, it’s satisfying to make Jaehyun who is equally prideful in his own ways and overly greedy, admit defeat.

“You’re so cute, dimple boy.” Their lips break apart and one heart beats fast. “I know you’re gonna do the same for me. I know you want me to rely on you but as much as possible, let me do things my own way because we both know my ideas are effective as hell.” Taeyong pulls away with a grin and wears a black, vintage coat he tugged out of the closet. “Maybe if you had thought of something better than this, I’d be the one thanking you.”

“That’s why I’m grateful. Because I had no idea what to do when we generated this scheme with Unione Corse.”

“And if you had one?”

“I would still let you do what you want because you wouldn’t back down.”

The two kingpins share a knowing smile before Taeyong playfully flicks Jaehyun’s forehead. “I’m going out.”

Jaehyun rubs his forehead and turns to the TV with a sigh. “If you’re going out to buy all those foods you let the thief stole and then gave away to the homeless yesterday, drop it. The housecleaner was kind enough to do it for us.”

“Oh, okay.” Taeyong shrugs and pockets his phone. “Then I don’t need to give you that dumb excuse of supermarket hopping. I’ll give you a new excuse today. God, I can’t believe the shit I told you yesterday.”

“What? Were you lying? Where did you actually go, Lee Taeyong?”

Oh shoot. That’s a complete name. Taeyong clips the sides of his hair in the back, letting just the side fringe dangle. “I wasn’t lying. I really did go to some supermarkets but did you really believe it would take me that long? Where the fuck would I be going hunting down all these stores, huh? You think I’m crazy?” He giggles at that because yes, he _is_ crazy and he _would_ hop from store to store all day on impulse. “I need some fresh air.”

Jaehyun opens his mouth to say something but the next news on TV cuts him off. It is now about the shooting that happened in Disneyland. Cops caught him after a clear copy of the park’s CCTV footage was obtained and his face was plastered in posters scattered in the metropolis. He was found in the city center through the help of a civilian.

The man, alias “Vadim”, stubbornly refuses to give his name. He confesses that he was paid to rain bullets in the park. The order was too kill as many as he can. Whether or not he is lying, _Vadim_ says his boss, whose identity he swears in his whole life not to reveal, did not give him an exact person to target.

Amounting to this is a scary sum that lured Vadim into taking the mission. Vadim will be sentenced to 20 years in prison without parole.

Jaehyun inwardly seethes. How can someone be so vile to kill children for the sake of killing, for the sake of having blood in their hands? Does it spark joy?

And how can he be so hypocritical when he himself, perpetuates murder that kills the children’s dreams and souls as well as their hope in humanity when they are abducted and sold to malicious, disgusting human beings such as himself, such as the people around him?

How can he be so self-centered?

Guilt was never this bitter. But ever since he met the twins, the word and all its variations suddenly leave a rusty tang in his mouth.

“Be careful outside and come back quick, please.” Jaehyun saunters to the kitchen and washes the unpleasant taste with cool water, praying that it also washes away the sins he’s going to commit numerous times in the future.

Taeyong doesn’t check up on him and leaves. Why should he ask the younger what’s wrong, when he knows perfectly what it is about?

He can turn his back to the church, sell his soul to the devil and let the flames of hell swallow him whole – but Jaehyun will _never_ get rid of the human in him. No matter how hard he tries. Taeyong _knows._ Jaehyun will fight a lot of enemies but the hardest one to kill will be his own conscience.

In hindsight, he should have asked that receptionist for Olivia’s schedule. He could’ve given the woman more than the bills he dropped on her lap. If he did, knowing how famished for money people are, maybe he’d get to see her picture as well.

His memories are sharp but some things are getting rusty as time goes by. She was disheveled when they met that day, panic-stricken and sweaty. It must be really hot in that mascot. Her untidy hair, naturally brown and almost the same shade of caramel covered most of her face but left her big azure eyes for him to look at.

To be able to recognize her with just one look after all these years, for his heart to thunder furiously, Taeyong didn’t know how bad he wanted to see her again.

“Who the fuck was she wearing,” Taeyong asks himself as he tries to put a name to the mascot. Honestly, he’s not very much into Disney characters. Hell, it was too late when he got into Spongebob too. Better late than never, he supposes. Patrick Star is his pick – that pink overweight starfish, the village idiot. He’s so dumb that Taeyong eventually roots for him.

“I’m really into dumb things.” He muses while thinking of his husband as Patrick Star. “Morosexual.”

The only thing he remembers about the mascot is it’s dressed in blue. The head that rolled is color green, but he didn’t see much of its face as it was kicked away.

Taeyong grabs something to snack on while looking around. She should be here today if she wasn’t yesterday, but that’s only if she hasn’t quit yet.

 _Fucking hell._ That receptionist would spill all the detail of her employment if he paid more. He was too focused on wanting to know if she’s existing to ask more to easily find her.

Oh well. He’s already here. Five hours of waiting didn’t deter him the first time. He can wait for another five.

The phone buzzes in his pocket. Thinking it’s only Jaehyun, Taeyong doesn’t check it. Nothing bad can possibly happen while those three are in the hideout, can it? Dragonaire should be trying to get inside Invictus to steal the goods that Unione Corse isn’t even confiscating for that exact reason.

It has only been an hour. Jaehyun can’t be too damn paranoid.

The buzzing doesn’t stop. Taeyong finally takes out the gadget only to raise a brow at the contact flashing on the screen. He answers the call. “Jung Yunho.”

_“…You’re supposed to be hiding, Taeyong.”_

“How do you know I’m practically screaming _come and get me, you fuckin’ cops_?”

“ _You wouldn’t call me by my real name if you were in a safe place.”_

Taeyong smirks. “What do you want?” Simultaneous screaming from a nearby ride prevents him from hearing what the other says. Taeyong then heads to the nearest comfort room. It’s thankfully empty. “What did you say? Those fucking loud ass kids couldn’t scream softly.”

Fort snorts. _“That doesn’t make sense. Where are you?”_

“Why do you wanna know? Is Jaehyun ranting to you like a neglected housewife? And why the fuck would you ask me? I swear to Jesus H. Christ, Fort. You’re old and you’re nosy.”

Taeyong hears a sigh.

_“I didn’t call you to ask your whereabouts. Jaehyun and I are not talking. I am busy working, you are busy hiding. I just can’t help but watch the news to know Invictus’ current situation. And I must say… you are doing a good job staying hidden.”_

The knife thrower dunks the waffle in a bin for he cannot stomach the possibility that the food is already contaminated by the bacteria too little to see floating in the closed bathroom air.

“Bet you’d do the same, Fort. You have tons of backup plans in case the same thing happens to you. Crime syndicates as huge as us have at least two different names. Don’t tell me you haven’t thought of things along the lines of faux records and multiple identities.”

_“Of course, I have my own aliases. I am just astonished that it actually works, if you ignore the fact that you cannot retrieve everything. There will be a patent strain in your business once you get back on track.”_

“Damn right it works. The second Red Phoenix was cornered, I had the system modified. Everything in it. I know you’re calling because you’re worried they might get you, right? Since we’re doing business with you. You heard in the news the cops are checking transaction records.”

Fort sighs once again. It sounds _tired._ That project he’s doing must be taxing. “ _As much as it’s embarrassing to admit, I am quite worried. Scared, even. I cannot easily leave and go there if an attack against Garnet arises. I’m on a standstill.”_

“You have nothing to be scared of, alright. Look, the news isn’t talking about you. They’re there trying to decode shit only Invictus will be able to crack. They’ve stopped considering other criminals, probably didn’t even get there. They only know Invictus and will only hunt it down. Take a damn chill pill, you. I am literally the most wanted now but do you hear my voice cracking in fear? Do I sound rattled to you?”

Their conversation is absolutely ridiculous. Taeyong had repeatedly told Fort to back off in being protective of him just because their fathers are sworn brothers. Now, he’s dealing with a Fort worried for his own wellbeing like they’re brothers. Taeyong doesn’t know which is worse.

Because his mood has taken a swift plunge, the knife thrower forgets about clarifying that none of this is real, that Fort is worrying for literally nothing, that their enemy isn’t the cops but Dragonaire, that dead third rate that used to wish to be affiliated with Garnet.

Whatever. Invictus’ enemy is Invictus’. Their personal issues aren’t anyone else’s business. Garnet is not their family member. Fort doesn’t need to know Jaehyun has registered Invictus under the Corsican Mafia. Fort doesn’t need to know about Dragonaire’s undying hatred. Fort doesn’t need to know anything at all.

Taeyong remembers Olivia. She might be passing by now. “Go work if you’re busy and seriously, don’t rub salt into the wound by telling me you’re not suffering. I didn’t ask.”

Without so much as a farewell, Taeyong hangs up. Curse Jung Yunho for being insensitive. If Taeyong didn’t know better, he’d say the other’s even gloating.

He scoffs, glaring at nothing as the voice in his head speaks to remind him a very specific thing…

_Ethan, a person only asks a lot because of two reasons: They are curious, or they want to make sure you’re still oblivious of their secrets._

The second one freezes him in his spot. It can’t be, can it? He can easily point fingers randomly and bombard them with all the blame, but the questions _why_ and _how_ will follow, and to answer those is what he cannot do right now.

Taeyong looks at his reflection in the mirror and feels the need to break it, so that it shows who has been hiding in the little trust he didn’t even know he has.

Catching the enemy can wait. Catching the elusive silhouette of his sister cannot. Damn Fort and his sudden calls. Hanging up on him was worth it.

One less annoyance out of the way, he walks out of the comfort room and resumes wandering. He might’ve missed her yesterday and while talking to Fort. Taeyong thinks he should scan the crowd for at least three times before heading to the other park.

By the entrance of Disney Studio 1 he chooses to stand and watch, realizing that even if he doesn’t move around, all the guests will. The mascots also do not stay on one spot. Sooner or later, they will cross paths.

They have to.

And he knows the world will never deny him his wishes, for the same mascot he remembers finally comes out of hiding.

Apparently, it’s an alien with the generic triple eyes, pointed ears and a single antenna. Taeyong scoffs. He’s about to come close when the same exact character appears from the right. Not a minute later, there are now three of them. Three of the exact same mascot.

Taeyong curses under his breath. Does he have to remove their headpieces one by one?

Obviously not, because one of the mascots walk away, removing the headpiece – and there it is, those long, caramel tresses.

_Got you._

The knife thrower casually saunters to where she is. She’s at the side of a booth with who looks like a fellow employee of the park, with her back to him. Otherwise, she would be running away again.

He stops right behind her, gaze burning through the sunglasses he’s wearing. The park employee notices him and smiles. “Oui, avez-vous besoin de quelque chose?” (“ _Yes, do you need anything?”_ )

“Yes, I do.”

Upon hearing his voice, the lady wearing the alien mascot freezes. She then whips around, fear evident in her eyes.

The corner of his mouth curls into a slight smirk as he tugs the sunglasses up and let it sit atop his head. “Hey, Taehee. I believe we need to talk.”

Olivia’s mouth shuts firmly. She’s still rigid, the steam of fear coming off of her. Her face is still the same although it matured. Her full cheeks are now sunken and the bags under her eyes are darker than it used to be. And her eyes… _oh,_ her eyes. They are the ones that changed the most. It is now filled with unspoken, intense angst. Years ago, they didn’t know how to be scared of him.

But change is the only permanent thing in the world and it struck her.

Olivia attempts to walk past him but Taeyong blocks her way, turns them around so that she’s facing her co-worker before whispering, mouth close to her ear. “Run, and I will break your legs.”

Her mouth closes once again. The other park employee watches them in puzzlement but sensing that something isn’t quite right.

Taeyong then turns to her. “Leave.”

“Olivia, ça va aller? Tu le connais?” (“ _Olivia, are you going to be okay? Do you know him?”_ ) Asks the employee who’s clearly worried for the other. She gets her answers with a nod, the only thing Olivia can do at the moment before they are left alone.

“We can’t talk here. Get your things and come with me.”

She shakes her head, hiding behind her the headpiece she’s carrying.

Taeyong tugs her harshly. “What the fuck does that head shake mean? You don’t want to? We have _a lot_ to talk about, Olivia. And it _pains_ me to see you disobey. How _dare_ you give me an attitude right now?” He hisses through his teeth and watches as her lips begin to quiver. Taking note that she might be overwhelmed by his sudden presence, Taeyong gives her some space by taking a step back but not taking his eyes off of her, suffocating her from the inside. “Step out of that costume and come with me. If you’re not here in 5 minutes, I will make a scene.”

Terrified and coerced by the prospect of her brother lashing out on innocent people, Olivia rushes to the back where the changing room is and wastes no second in getting out of the stuffy mascot before grabbing her bag and meeting Taeyong outside, who then wraps his hand around her wrist tightly to drag her to where his car is parked.

She sits in the passenger, fastened up and hugging her bag close to her chest. Olivia keeps her sight forward as they leave the park, not wanting to look at the man next to her – the man everyone in the neighborhood badmouthed, the man that ran away from home, the man that is the cause of her suffering.

The few years that passed by fooled her into thinking it’s all over, that he’s gone, that everyone in their little broken family is gone. She wished to see her mother again. Only Léonie. Not Namgyu who died before her eyes, not even her brother that she once prayed for to the heavens during the times the blunt tip of a knife drew on her back like she was a canvas.

God knows how much she begged them not to hurt him because despite the burden brought to her by his insanity, she still cared for him. His rotten personality is not his fault. It’s not her brother’s fault that he was born differently, that he was destined to be unpleasantly different. It’s not Ethan’s fault his mind told him to stab her finger and he did. It will never be his fault, she believes so.

But now, she can barely function and blend in the society normally because of him, because of his actions.

Because he didn’t come to save her.

That’s the only thing she blames him for. Ethan stole her normal life. Seeing him now looking like he has no imperfections, easily blending in the crowd he has always cursed, Olivia _hurts._ She thought she has finally forgotten the horror.

Yet it sits next to her, physically.

Life is truly repulsive.

When the car stops, it’s only then she finally takes in her surroundings. What are they doing at Euro Disney?

A white envelope falls on her lap. Olivia picks it up, flipping it around to check for anything that is written.

“Give that to your superior. It’s a resignation letter.” Taeyong says. When Jaehyun fell asleep last night, he quickly composed a resignation letter addressed generally since he doesn’t have the name of her boss. He supposed she cannot continue working once he finds her because she might disappear again, and he cannot let that happen given the fact she seems to be wary of him.

Her eyes widen at what he said before she shakes her head in protest.

The knife thrower stares at her for a few seconds before jabbing her head with a finger. “Did I wind you up that you forgot how to talk, huh?” Not waiting for an answer, he gets off the car and jogs to her side, pulling her out. “I’ll go with you.”

His hold on her arm will leave a bruise, for sure. Olivia knows she can never go anywhere without him. Ethan was overprotective of her before, borderline paranoid when she used to go home late. He coldly reprimanded her, even threatened to do unimaginable things to her friends saying they weren’t who she thought they were.

Perhaps, he was right. They ended up leaving her once the benefits of being her friend ran out.

“Good day…” The receptionist’s gaze shifts when she recognizes him.

Olivia gulps, pinching the envelope under her arm before _signing_ to the receptionist. Taeyong stares at the side of her face inquisitively.

“Oh, the boss is in a meeting. You can wait for hi–”

He quickly intercepts. “She’s resigning immediately.” Taeyong takes the envelope and hands it to the receptionist. “Give this to her boss. Also, Olivia is not to be contacted anymore. She’s out of this company and that’s it. Keep her final pay.”

With that he walks her out of the building with a lingering question in his mind that he only asks after he books her a room in the closest hotel not affiliated with the amusement park.

“You’re mute?”

Obviously, she stays quiet. Realizing she’s probably never going back to her own place, she willingly sits down on the couch by the foot of the bed. The room is expensive, she can see that. The bed can fit at least three people. Is she really going to stay here from now on? She’s been used to the small space she’s renting that being in _this_ room makes her feel so much more alone.

Taeyong takes her silence as a confirmation. “The last time I checked, you could talk. You talked back to me with the sharpest words you learned from your stupid friends. Or maybe you’re just pretending because you don’t want to have this conversation, hm?”

His change in tone as suspicion clouds his judgment makes her flinch. Olivia curls up to the corner of the couch as though she’s protecting herself. But even though she clearly fears him, her eyes are glued to his, staring like she can’t believe Ethan is there.

Is it all so easy? Is he really with her, just like that?

There are so many things she wants to ask. All this time he’s alive, where had he been? Did he not look for her?

Her pain doubles, squeezing her heart.

The black-haired man stops before her, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. “Yeah, I look different now, don’t I? I actually already forgot what I looked like when I was 19. And surprisingly, your face is clean.” He mentions, indirectly meaning to pertain to the torture she went through even though he knows they specifically ruined her back.

Dragonaire. His blood boils.

Taeyong nears her and grabs her face. “Let me get a good look at you.” He turns her face from left to right. “This is not how I pictured you. It’s honestly so underwhelming, because the last time we saw each other, it was light years ago. You should have had a glow up. So it appears you didn’t grow up well.”

Frowning, she swats his hand and pulls away.

Taeyong chuckles and returns to his spot against the wall to observe her for a while. “So... you’re not gonna be able to tell me why you’re alive, and why you’re here in France. I really thought they killed you.”

For some reasons, Olivia begins to visibly tremble although it doesn’t worry the other. Her gaze falters, the fear gone and replaced with...nothing. Like she’s suddenly in her own world, far from reality. Taeyong doesn’t think too much of it.

“Lee Namgyu.”

Their father’s name sends her spiraling downwards. Her condition worsens as she begins to breathe heavily and sweat even though the room is cold. Still, Taeyong doesn’t do anything.

“Our good for nothing dad is dead, right? Tell me he’s dead.”

Fuck him up if even Lee Namgyu turns out to be alive after all. That will not make sense anymore because even though he didn’t see his body, he saw how badly electrocuted it was to the point of burning. But come to think of it – Dragonaire is suddenly alive, too.

Why are all these people rising from the dead?

“You’re gonna be so hard to interpret, Olivia. I don’t know how to do the sign language. Can’t you write for me?” He grabs her shaking hands and winces at how crooked they are, most likely from the torture she received. “Nevermind. I won’t understand your penmanship. Use your phone. No? So who do I ask? How do I know why they didn’t kill you?”

Tears run down her face as she silently cries, now full-on gasping as she tries to chase some oxygen. Only then does the knife thrower realizes she’s actually having a panic attack.

“Shit,” he mutters loud and clear, watching her episode with big, clueless eyes. For someone with an impressive IQ, he’s momentarily befuddled. “What? Does me talking about the past trigger you? Calm down!”

_Great. Telling her to calm down because that’s going to work, right? As if she didn’t think of that?_

“What do you need?! Hey! What should I do!” It’s the first time in his life he has ever panicked. Is he actually panicking, though? Or is he just getting affected by the sight of his sister breaking down?

_Is panic contagious? How would I know?_

“Stop scratching yourself, goddamit!” Taeyong grabs her hands to keep her from clawing down her arms. Angry red lines run down her skin.

This won’t work. She needs to hold on to something for her senses to hit her. Taeyong rushes to the mini fridge and uses his handkerchief to wrap around the ice cubes the fridge dispenses. After that, he forces her to hold it. “Do you hear me? Hold that until it melts.”

What else should he do? Taeyong looks around mindlessly before spotting her bag. There should be something inside to help her. Rummaging through her stuff, he finds an essential oil and scans the tiny text behind it before applying it literally all over face, almost spilling. “Damn it if that won’t work. Don’t die on me!”

Taeyong dumps the bottle in her bag and kneels to take her shoes off. If she’s numb all over, then her feet need to feel something too. So he massages her feet, squeezing from her toes up to her ankles. “I don’t know if you can hear me, but do some basic breathing exercise. The fuck are you panicking for, Olivia? You never had this.”

He has never encountered anyone having a panic attack. Looking up and seeing the mess he did on her face, Taeyong almost bonks his own head. He wasn’t trying to drown her in essential oil, was he?

“I’m not a physical therapist, Taehee.” He talks to her, hoping she can finally hear him and focus on his voice. Her gaze is still a little far away, although her breathing and sobbing have slightly mellowed. “So pardon the essential oil. I figured that if I spilled it on your face, you would calm down faster.” Even his own reasoning makes him want to laugh and jump off a bridge at the same time.

Several more minutes go by until she completely calms down, her crying reduced into soft hiccups. Olivia lets him continue massaging her feet as she grips the soak handkerchief. The water droplets land on her pants, making a big wet patch.

“…Alright. I’m not gonna ask you.”

Taeyong assures her. He’s not gonna ask _for now._ Questions that haven’t been given answers yet cannot be forgotten. It’s not like her existence is such a small matter. It’s got to mean _something._ And he can feel that that something is going to knock the wind out of him.

While she collects herself, he gets up to call for a room service. The wait for the food is spent in deafening quietness. She walks to the bathroom, although unstably, to wash her face and she comes out soon to sooth her throat with water. The food arrives just as she sits on the couch again but on the other end as she unintentionally wet it with the melted ice.

Taeyong pushes the tray to her. “Taehee, you can’t run away. You get it? My face probably reminds you of shit you wanna forget but you can’t avoid me. I’m in absolute shock that you’re here. It doesn’t show but I am. I know you survived by yourself but it’s impossible to get rid of me now. Do you hear me?”

She nods slowly. In spite of the fact that he’s scary, his voice is what she held onto to get back to reality. In the middle of her panic attack, she constantly fought with her mind. It wanted to block the trigger but it also wanted her to reach out for it because if she didn’t, she’s going to lose herself.

Plus, if she leaves this world without getting to taste this mouthwatering food before her, there’s no one else to blame but herself. Not even Ethan.

“Do you live close to the park?” Taeyong asks, taking the wet cloth from her. Somehow, she’s still holding it.

Olivia nods mindlessly as she’s hypnotized by the appetizing meal on the tray. Taeyong’s expression scrunches at his sister’s stupidity. “Eat the damn food if you’re hungry. I got that for you.”

Still weirded out by her behavior, he takes out his phone to call someone.

It gets picked up on the first ring.

_“Boss! You’re alive?!”_

“No, it’s my ghost talking, Jennie. Why do you sound like you weren’t expecting it.”

_“Was I supposed to?”_

“Asshole. I want you in Paris ASAP.”

_“Huh? Why?”_

“I will explain it when you get here. When’s the next earliest flight?”

_“Err, let me check.”_

“…”

_“It’s in two hours!”_

“Pack your things; I’ll text you the address. In four hours, you should be here.”

_“Okay, I will…”_

“How’s Bordeaux?” Taeyong lowers his voice as he glances at his sister who’s now busy eating.

_“There are checkpoints. But at night the cops don’t even try to inspect everyone going in and out of the city. The noise is dwindling, too. I mean, there’s a huge traffic accident yesterday and everyone’s attention went there. If you don’t give a shit about the black market and whatnot, why would you focus on it? So the people aren’t too invested in it. That’s good, right?”_

“Yeah, it is. And the cops lessening checkpoint period at night is the plan. We’re waiting for Dragonaire to do something. Anyway, make sure you’re arriving because I’ll wait.”

Taeyong hangs up as soon as he’s done talking to Jennie, not caring if she still wants to talk. “Olivia.”

His sister looks up at him timidly, chewing.

“I can’t leave you alone so I asked someone to come here and watch you for me.”

She signs to tell him she doesn’t need a babysitter, but he predictably fails to understand.

“Don’t sign because I will not understand you. Wait. I’ll guess. Does it mean you don’t need someone to watch you?”

She nods quickly, eyes wide.

Taeyong snorts. “Yeah, and I believe you’re not going to leave.”

Olivia deflates before taking a spoonful of soup. Her sight then focuses on the ring on her brother’s finger before looking at him cautiously, wordlessly inquiring.

“I’m married.”

She coughs out her food in shock. Taeyong’s eyes roll so hard that he actually feels dizzy for a second. “You’re so dramatic. You didn’t expect that, did you?” He follows the rhetorical question with a snort and sits on the bed, placing one of the pillows on his lap. “I’ll have you know – I breathe and women offer themselves to me.” He grins before dropping another bomb that makes her cough once again. “His name is Jaehyun.”

It really shows on her face that she never saw that one coming. More specifically, she couldn’t imagine Ethan having a stable relationship with anyone. That sort of makes her laughable since she doesn’t have a partner and she’s the one with a normal thought process.

Taeyong’s laugh resonates in the room. Olivia’s comical expression is the icing on a cake. He doesn’t mind the implication that she never considered him being able to find a significant other as long as that fear in her eyes disappear even just for a moment.

“Yeah, women will throw themselves at me left and right but I married a man. Not because I’m into men. I’m not into whatever you call it – I’m simply into Jaehyun.” His laugh dulls into a wholesome smile. “You’re not homophobic, are you?”

As if the question personally offends her, she furiously shakes her head and glares at him as though saying, _‘how dare you think so low of me?’_

Taeyong will bet she really means to say that. “I don’t care anyway. I’ve never been interested in anyone, be it a man or a woman. But I married Jaehyun because I wanted to. You’ll meet him at the right time. It’s complicated right now and you don’t really need to be a part of it.”

He does his best not to expose the nature of his job, even the gist of it. Let her think he’s having marital problems. The vaguer, the better.

Jennie arrives a little over four in the afternoon. Taeyong notifies the receptionist to let her come up to the room. When she enters though, Taeyong considers kicking her back to Bordeaux.

“Boss, you booked a room! Are you finally gonna bed me–” The sight of Olivia coming out of the bathroom shuts her up. Jennie gasps dramatically with a hand on her chest. Surprisingly, she’s wearing something that doesn’t spill the tops of her breasts. “Who’s this? Are you suggesting a three–”

“Say it and I will slit your throat.” Taeyong’s cold gaze freezes her, his teeth chewing on the temple tip of his sunglasses. “That’s Olivia.”

“Olivia.” The bartender tests the name in her tongue, eyes darting over to the quiet girl. “Olivia who–” And then it dawns on her who exactly the woman is. “Hold the fuck up!” She shamelessly invades her personal space to study her features. “Oh my god. The sister?”

“…How did you even know about my sister?”

“Please, you told me about her once! Isn’t it why we get along? Because you treated me like your own sister!”

Taeyong taps the back of his hand on Jennie’s cheek. “Cut the crap. I will never see anyone as a sister especially you, when you constantly try to seduce me.”

“Aww,” Jennie pouts disappointedly, dropping her bag near the bed. “It won’t hurt to try to get in your pants. After all, that’s where you hide your cash.”

“That’s in my goddamn pocket, Jennie. Gold digging bitch. And why the hell are you so loud?” The knife thrower clicks his tongue as he reaches for the TV remote to increase the volume of the action movie he’s watching.

Jennie shrugs and grins before sitting in bed to remove her shoes. “Would you rather they hear me moaning?”

Her words catch Olivia off-guard, causing her to frown at her brother who kicks Jennie off the bed.

“I’m not cheating on your brother-in-law, Olivia. Speaking of Jaehyun, I kinda miss him.”

Jennie groans from the floor as he rubs her wrist. “Ugh, hot homosexuals be fucking each other. What’s left for me?” When she gets no reaction from her boss, she turns to his sister and waves enthusiastically. “Hi!” Jennie finally gets up and closes in on her again, this time to caress her hair. “She’s so pretty! But you got a poor posture, love. We can work on that. But first…” She looks at Taeyong expectantly. “What am I gonna do here?”

Taeyong beckons her to follow him to one corner of the room. Olivia lets out a breath of relief for being left alone.

“She wanted to escape.” He says. “Make sure she doesn’t leave your line of sight.”

“She doesn’t wanna have anything to do with you?”

“Seems like it. You got cigs?”

Jennie makes a face before fetching a pack from her bag and hands it to her boss together with the lighter. The smell of smoke gradually fills the room. Olivia looks at him through her periphery and leaves her spot on the couch to open the window and let fresh air flow in.

The knife thrower pins his eyes on his sister as he talks to Jennie as quietly as he can. “She had a panic attack earlier so watch what you tell her. Choose your damn words wisely and don’t speak of anything related to mafia. You understand?”

Understanding the weight of the situation between the siblings, Jennie decided to be serious for once. “I got it. You’re paying the room, right?”

“Of course. I’ll wire you the money. You’ll know which account.”

“Does your husband know?” Jennie smirks as she gently grabs Taeyong’s face and forces him to look at her. “Housing not one but two women behind his back, I wonder how he’s going to react when he hears about it.”

Taeyong inhales a lungful of smoke, keeps it in for a few seconds while he holds her sultry stare before casually blowing out right on her face. “You’d be dead before he even hears about it. Ever thought of getting off my dick? I’m literally married. And no, he doesn’t know yet. Keep your nose out of my business.”

Jennie exhales hard through her nose as he tries to get rid of the smell of cigarette. “You can’t expect me not to be curious when you’re literally making me babysit your sister.”

“Just stop asking me this and that, alright? Jaehyun is dealing with a lot of shit and Olivia’s arrival will make things complicated. I don’t know how but I do know it will.” He agitatedly takes more of the nicotine, cursing as it drops to the floor when his fingers twitch. The stick is soon crushed beneath the sole of his shoe.

“Mm, so you care about your husband.”

“Of course, I do fucking care about him, Jennie. I literally gave my life to him.”

The statement astonishes her. “Oh, wow. I mean, yeah, you say your vows on the wedding and you’re someone who finds it difficult to feel. But to give your life to him?” She shakes her head, deeply impressed. “Do I take that literally?”

“You take nothing because it’s Jaehyun who will have it anyway.”

The bartender makes a face. “Not telling him yet is probably for the best. Her being here, out of the blue, gives you more problems to solve.”

“Precisely. We’ll finish the problem with Invictus and then that’s when Olivia will enter. Make sure she doesn’t get away from you.”

“Ethan, this might be farfetched but what if she has something to do with the problem right now? I mean...you said the enemy is Dragonaire. That group…they tortured your family. Your enemy is trying to ruin your again, and now she’s back.”

That prospect has already crossed his mind. The most recent it did was this morning. There’s no way Olivia survived just like that from the hands of Kim Taejun. That man swore to inflict pain on her the way Taeyong did to his son. Kim Taejun himself said she was dead. Obviously, he was lying. But with the state of her injuries, it’s impossible she would live if she was disposed after that photo was taken. Dragonaire would certainly leave her, together with Lee Namgyu in some place nobody would find them.

It’s either she was strong enough to look for help or someone had taken her in. A certain someone.

“Most likely, she’s related to this. To some extent. I hope Jaehyun’s squad is doing their job looking for the remaining Dragonaire members. They could be the ones that brazenly came to France.” Taeyong checks his phone for the time. “That’s new. The husband only sent me two messages.” He shrugs it off and goes to his sister. “I’ve entrusted you to Jennie. Be good, Taehee. I may be gone but my eyes are here.”

He reaches to pat her head, almost, but she flinches away. Taeyong clenches his hand and puts the sunglasses on before leaving the room, closing the door behind him with a slam.

Jennie notes the way the girl visibly sags, but not because she’s sad of her brother leaving. She looks far from sad. Rather, it’s ease that Jennie recognizes.

“Well, now that the big brother is gone!” She claps loudly and takes out a makeup kit from her bag, excitedly showing it to the other lady. “Let’s have some fun, shall we?”

Jaehyun doesn’t ask Taeyong where he’s spending the day when he goes out. Three more days have passed that the older is mostly out of the hideout, doing God knows what and coming home with nothing in his hands. Jaehyun knows it isn’t simple, that Taeyong does not simply want to breathe some fresh air. The knife thrower doesn’t crave peace – he shuns it. He’s been suspicious since day 1, since the day Taeyong made up that excuse of going to different supermarkets and having his purchases stolen. The sharpshooter is smarter than that and he might be a little hurt for being taken for a fool. But he also trusts his husband. Taeyong will not do anything that will cause all of their tactics to come apart at the seams. So he just lets him leave without asking. Taeyong will most likely give him lies.

If he doesn’t want to tell Jaehyun, then it’s not worthy of being asked.

There’s nothing much to see in the hideout. It’s just a house with too many rooms and too little occupants. Jaehyun would love to take the twins out but he’s still worried about their safety. The cops volunteering to guard the Invictus headquarters still hasn’t detected any suspicious activity. Dragonaire might not even be there yet. The enemy might still be in Paris and it will be dangerous for the three of them to go out. Jaehyun cannot lose the twins.

 _Elliot De la Croix,_ the fictional person Taeyong created is now crowned the vilest man in the country. News portals and live reports are asking the civilians to help catch the criminal. There’s no one to give the media a specific description of Elliot’s face, so everyone is relying on intuition. Everyone is suspecting anyone who looks relatively suspicious.

The raid in Red Phoenix is now completely forgotten. The comments under news articles don’t even want to hear about him, although they are throwing rocks at him and all the overly rich individuals who chose to taint their hands with ill-gotten wealth.

When Jaehyun reads those comments, he doesn’t even feel an ounce of remorse. The money they have comes from all the illegal activities known by man. At the very least, the good thing about Red Phoenix’s scandal being tossed aside is that his husband is basically free from condemnation.

Which leaves them with the Dragonaire ordeal. Jaehyun wishes no more than to be ubiquitous right now. He aches to see for himself what happens in Bordeaux and see if the enemies are still in Paris at the same time. These bastards, whether they are indeed Dragonaire or someone else using the latter as a trap most likely know that the kingpins of Invictus will ask help from their most trusted ally, Garnet. Going to Paris is just the very much expected course of action from Invictus.

So why haven’t they appeared yet? Even in Bordeaux, their shadows are invisible. What does the enemy exactly want from them?

Taeyong comes home at six in the evening as usual. Jaehyun thinks it’s the curfew the older gave himself. He still doesn’t ask what the knife thrower did the whole day, and Taeyong still doesn’t initiate telling him what it is. The younger just hopes it’s to help in speeding up the process of finding their opponent.

“Nothing new on TV?” The older asks as he sits on the couch making Haechan scurry to the other side to continue playing with his twin.

Jaehyun shakes his head, nursing his headache with a cup of tea. “I think it finally got through their heads that this case won’t be solved right away. Petty crimes take days, even weeks depending on the resources.” He puts the cup down and relaxes in his seat as he pins a look at his husband. “You should ask Unione Corse.”

“I suppose so. There are no updates from them for the whole day.” Taeyong stretches his arms before taking off his coat and flinging it to the armrest of the couch. He spent the first half of the day just lounging in the hotel and trying to mend the bond between him and his sister. It isn’t really improving much as Olivia still keeps to herself, flinching every now and then and even looking at him in the eyes proves to be a strenuous work.

The sharpshooter watches the other for a while as Taeyong unties the laces of his boots. He trusts Taeyong a lot – approving of this ruse to get Invictus under the public limelight is an unbelievable feat from Jaehyun. But to be left in the dark for days is still a little disconcerting. Besides, trust is a two-way street. One can’t just let himself be clueless and expect that things are normal especially when it’s been repeatedly happening.

He’s about to finally ask and give in to the pull of curiosity when Taeyong’s phone buzzes quite violently that it visibly rattles in his pocket. Jaehyun frowns in question.

“Why the hell does your phone do that?”

“Oh,” Taeyong takes it out, the device still vibrating excessively in his hold. “Well I’m not gonna feel it if it’s not maximized.” He checks the message, face not changing as he reads.

Jaehyun takes a deep breath. “Why… What are you even doing for you not to notice it?”

He’s rudely stopped by a hand to his mouth. Taeyong shoves the phone extremely close to his face that his eyes cross trying to read what’s on the screen.

> _Spotted a man in black sneak inside the area through the back. We told the other cops on break not to return yet and take their time so we could watch this guy unnoticed. He entered one of the doors I purposely left unlocked and came back with a box. We’re not sure what it specifically contains. Also opened the few parcels in one of the vans. It was quick. Like he knew exactly what to get. He took bags and bags of drugs together with the items in the box initially taken inside. We will check what’s missing when we’re certain he’s gone. - UC_

Jaehyun rips the phone out of Taeyong’s hand to read the message again and again. His mind absorbs it; he just can’t believe it. They’re finally on the move. He looks at the older, wide eyed in a concoction of emotions. “What are we going to do now?”

Taeyong crosses his arms and glances at the occupied twins as he talks to Jaehyun. “We’ll watch where those items go.”

“How?”

“Irina Caron was taken to Paris. It’s only logical that the enemy is still here. They must know Garnet is our partner so they would expect us to come to the capital to seek protection – that wasn’t given to us. They cannot be in Bordeaux.”

“But how are we going to know where the items go?”

Menacing, blue eyes filled with mistrust and searing desire to annihilate look at Jaehyun.

“We won’t look for it. It will show itself to us.”

He takes his phone back and orders the cops to send the others home and for the Unione Corse members to remain watching, to let the thief take more if the man’s coming back.

Hours go by before another update comes. The same man has returned twice to take more boxes. The Unione Corse guesses that this thief has only been waiting for the right time to sneak in and when he saw that only a few cops were around, he took the chance.

Taeyong replies, “ _continue pretending to be unaware. I might know where it’ll go. I will tell you what to do next when I’m certain about who this person is.”_

“Yong, are you sure about what you’re saying? It’ll show itself?” Jaehyun asks skeptically as he cannot digest the ambiguous suggestion. “So are we just letting them take our products? Taeyong, those are difficult to purchase, and not to mention expensive. The clients are still expecting to receive their orders once we get back to business.” He can’t help but feel frustrated thinking of the unjust situation. Those products are equivalent to tons of money and if they cannot retrieve it, they’re going to lose a lot.

Nonchalantly, Taeyong shrugs. “We’ll get them back. I’m fed up of telling you not to worry because I know you’re incapable of doing that. It’s Invictus we’re talking about so worry all you want. But if we both act now, who’s going to take care of the gremlins?”

The frustration in his chest evaporates into the air as Jaehyun looks at the twins who are playing a game with their hands. Taeyong has a point. If he acts on impulse, no one would be there to protect the kids. Maybe they should’ve left them in the care of one of Taeyong’s men. They seemed to cooperate with Jennie.

“Call Jennie. She can watch the ki–”

“Are you out of your mind?” Taeyong scowls. “The kids are not her responsibility. To be fair, neither are they yours, nor mine. But you wanted them, so you be the one to stay here and watch. The people working for me have lives of their own.”

“Since when did you care about their lives, Taeyong? You sound so different and it’s strange. Say.” Jaehyun gets ahold of the question he wants to ask ever since. “What are you up to? You go out for hours and return at night without telling me what you’re doing. I can’t just sit here and not have an idea what’s happening to you outside. I already stopped bombarding you with texts and calls because I am letting you do what you want but I can’t let you do what you want when I don’t know what it is!”

Haera looks at them, surprised by Jaehyun’s outburst. The man is losing his cool again.

Jaehyun quickly sits beside Taeyong and leans in, harshly whispering. “Are you doing things on your own again? I know that you took it upon yourself to protect me and Invictus but I worry about you, more than anything.”

The knife thrower grins and pokes Jaehyun’s side, causing the latter to yelp and clutch his waist indignantly. “That’s thoughtful of you, dimple boy. What I’m doing… I can’t tell you just yet. But you can say that it’s related to Dragonaire. I will be fine.” He leans back enough to look into Jaehyun’s eyes. “Trust me. You only have me to trust. And your squad, whatever. Let’s wait for their investigation before planning what to do next.”

“You’re supposed to be impulsive, Taeyong.” The younger softens as he stares at the other’s mischievous smile.

“And I still am. I’m just doing something that prevents me from being impulsive. You’re here to balance that, aren’t you? You’re supposed to be the rational one.”

“We’re rubbing off on each other.”

“That’s what happens when you’ve been with someone for a while. You adapt into each other’s ways. Oh no,” Taeyong gasps softly, seemingly nonplussed. “Does it mean I’m adapting well into your normal ways? Tasteless.”

“I think you are. It’s one way to maintain your socially acceptable behavior. I read it.” Jaehyun sighs and reclines, staring up at the ceiling. “Our pace will be up to you, then. Give me a heads up if you need a hand.”

Jaehyun shrieks when Taeyong takes his hand and puts it on the latter’s crotch. He hugs it to his chest as though it was burned while his husband rolls off the couch, laughing. “You’re shameless!”

“You want it!”

With one glance at the kids who are now back to ignoring the weird adults, the sharpshooter scrunches his nose, furiously blushing. “Tell me something I don’t know.”

As if on cue, the laughter dies down and Taeyong’s head pops up from the floor. “You prude man, you.”

The twins jerk in shock at the shriek that comes from Jaehyun as he gets tackled down the couch, mercilessly tickled.

Haera turns to her brother, dumbfounded. “Did they tell us how old they are?”

“No…”

“I think it’s better that we don’t know.”

Each squad member is busy, occupied with something that’s going to cover how slow the time is running – especially during wee hours of the night. If it’s already nauseatingly boring with the constant routine they follow every single day when the headquarters is still operating, then it has become ten times worse now that Invictus is inactive.

It’s not easy to multitask. With the lack of work to do, everyone is dismissed and the squad takes it upon themselves to be the ones to carefully contact the local clients. They could’ve left that to the other members of Invictus, but they are the ones that understand the situation better. The squad didn’t bother to debone the affair one by one to the rest as it is safer that only a few know.

After all, Dragonaire once conspired with the most unexpected member of Red Phoenix without them detecting a single thing all throughout the period Moon Taeil moved in the dark within the organization.

The order in the room is broken by Johnny bursting through the door. “Everyone! I got a message from Jaehyun. He said we can continue some transactions, but only the smaller ones. Because our system is blocked in the French HQ, they won’t be able to trace us. We can also pick up on where we left off from the other works but he says only one at a time because there’s a possibility we’re being spied.”

“But the Unione Corse won’t expose us anyway. What’s the use of blocking us?” Yuta asks.

“They deleted our data temporarily in case those cops who aren’t part of the Unione Corse check the records. Since we can’t be detected, we can still continue working. But like he said, one at a time.”

Doyoung sighs, pushing his glasses up his nose bridge. “Then I will update some clients.”

“Let’s do that quickly and work on the investigation.” Ten suggests with slight irritation in his tone. “It’s been days but all the people we found from the Kims’ online profiles are either not connected to Dragonaire or untraceable. Not to mention we only found four of them which is really disappointing.”

Winwin answers him. “The shutdown was sudden and without a clear instruction from Jaehyun, we cannot really just do whatever we want. We also had to talk to customers – and that’s not easy. We might be the gang with weapons but we sold them the guns they can use against us. Why didn’t they tell us earlier that we can still operate?”

Johnny shrugs before taking a seat at Doyoung’s desk. “It probably slipped his mind. Among all of us, he’s going to be the most devastated and we all know why. If we’re anxious, imagine what the kingpin must be undergoing.”

“Which kingpin?” The Japanese gunman dares to joke which everyone reacts to derisively. “Only one of them could be in great distress.”

“Ridiculing Taeyong aside, may I remind you that he was the one who commanded their team to block our system so that none of us, even Jaehyun will be traced just in case. Jaehyun only told us to save the data. Technically speaking, the only Invictus leader that could have his head on a platter should the stratagems fall to any error is Taeyong. The only members that will be imprisoned are those in the French HQ. Even Garnet is deleted from the system.” The smirk on Doyoung’s smirk is so subtle it’s almost invisible. “No matter how much we judge his shortcomings, he’s the one literally saving our asses right now.”

Yuta’s eyes roll but he acknowledges Taeyong’s help. If he can talk to the second kingpin right now, he might consider thanking him personally. A long time has passed but he still remembers how the other fought hard to save Sicheng without thinking twice.

“Anyway,” Winwin awkwardly continues. “I think we scared those we managed to locate. If they actually knew something, we lost the chance to talk to them again.”

“That’s because Yuta dressed like generic loan sharks in the movies on the first day and on the second day, he looked like a recruiter for the Jehovah’s Witnesses.”

Yuta shoots up his swivel chair, perplexed at Ten’s statement. “What the hell is that?”

“It’s a Christian religion. They try to recruit more members to join them by visiting places. Haven’t you encountered them before?”

“That probably only happens in Thailand.” The Japanese says softly, pondering.

“Does it? Anyway, it’s not like we could threaten all of them. It might backfire. So Yuta did what he had to do.”

Winwin mutters something that doesn’t escape Yuta’s sharp hearing. “By merely breathing and he gets doors slammed to his face.”

The petulant mocking grates Yuta’s ears that he instantly fumes, glowering. “Well why don’t you try it?”

“Enough.”

Doyoung huffs at the two’s immaturity before typing on the laptop once again. “I tried to get into Dragonaire’s system but it’s expired. That’s not surprising, since it needed to be renewed regularly. Do we have other clues?”

Johnny scratches his head as he tries to think of something, eager to help in the investigation. “Other clues…?” All the other members wait for him, not even trying to think. Johnny perks up as he remembers something. “Wait. The dragon tattoo!”

“What about it?”

“We have to look for those with the dragon tattoo! Let’s not focus on the members of their group. Do you remember seeing the same tattoo on the men that captured us?”

Everyone’s attention is now on him, their spirits suddenly revived. Yuta shakes his head. “No. The ones I was with when they fought with Jaehyun and Taeyong didn’t have that tattoo on their napes.”

The tall man nods anyway. “Alright. So if the dragon tapestry is exactly like the tattoo, or very close to it, that means whoever it is coming for Invictus has the same tattoo with the dead Kims to be able to produce a tapestry of it. Because if you don’t have it, how will you be able to be familiar with it enough to recreate it?”

Doyoung turns his chair to them, starting to be convinced with the idea. “Family members. The tattoo was only found in Kim Taejun and Kim Jaeseok. Maybe the family members have it too.”

“Exactly!”

Loudly exclaiming, startling the whole room, Johnny gets off Doyoung’s desk with a beaming face. “Not all family members have to be in the group per se. So we find their family. They should still be alive.”

Ten purses his lips, thinking. “But what if it’s not who we are thinking of? What if it’s someone camouflaging in the ghost of Dragonaire?”

Johnny points at him. “Then we’ll find out why they are pretending to be Dragonaire and why they are targeting us.” He quickly goes to Doyoung’s side, leaning over with his palms planted on the desk. “Please check Kim Jaeseok’s social media for photos.”

Doyoung’s fingers expertly go over the keyboard and he quickly pulls up the pictures in Kim Jaeseok’s account. “Here.”

“Look for someone that appears in several pictures. It will be better if there’s more than one.”

They all huddle around the computer. Doyoung gives them each a face to look for from the first picture as they go over at least a hundred photos publicly posted, so it will be easier to spot the same person. In the end, it’s Winwin who notes having spotted his assigned face 36 times, the highest count out of all of them.

“It’s this woman,” he points to the screen. “She has the same eyes and mouth with Kim Jaeseok.”

Johnny scrolls through the comments under the picture. “I think it’s his mother based on the comments here. I can’t believe his account is too open for us to check.”

“He wasn’t in the members’ profiles when I checked what was left of their system after blasting it. It had major glitches. That’s why we only knew he was Kim Taejun’s son through the tattoos. He wasn’t officially a member of their group – that might explain the carelessness. He personally had nothing grievous to hide.”

“I found this guy in the photos at least ten times,” Ten tapped a finger on the screen, pointing the man standing next to the speculated wife of Dragonaire’s kingpin. “He and Jaeseok sort of look alike. Maybe this is the actual heir, and not Jaeseok. I don’t think he was in the profiles as well, but that’s maybe because he wasn’t introduced yet.”

Yuta squints, staring at the man’s face. “He doesn’t look capable of being in a mafia group.”

“That could be the reason we never saw him even once.” Doyoung reads more of the comments as Johnny scrolls down. “We can’t see the tattoo, but they must know things about Kim Taejun’s little org. It’s impossible that they don’t know anything.”

Johnny moves his face closer to the screen and perks up as he highlights something. “I think her name is Park Minkyung! The woman who appeared 36 times.”

Doyoung then shoos them away from his desk and leaves an order in his commanding voice. “Run your computers and look for all the Park Minkyung nearby. As soon as we narrow it down to the closest that fits the profile, we’ll go to her.”

The car wheels out of the gas station as soon as it’s filled up. Taeyong turns the stereo on and finishes the last chunk of the chocolate bar he’s snacking on for breakfast, wiping his stained thumb down his black hoodie, which Jaehyun called unstylish before he left.

What’s wrong with his clothes? It’s his style ever since. A hoodie, tight pants and kicks. Probably not the best in the fashionable city of Paris but no one’s got the time to judge his choice of clothing anyway.

At least he made no other comments aside from that, particularly about Taeyong going somewhere he doesn’t know. The talk they had is definitely the cause of it.

Today though, Taeyong’s planning to stay in Honfleur – though he didn’t exactly mention that. There’s a festival being and he wants to take his sister there. Jaehyun, at first, frowns at the idea of Taeyong being out for literally a whole day doing God knows what. As predicted. What could be so dire for the older not to return? But Taeyong knows what he’s doing, so Jaehyun reluctantly lets it be even though he sort of wants to go, too. Besides, if it is indeed related to the pressing issue they are facing, then it is only wise that he stays in the hideout to keep the twins safe.

In the end he lectures the knife thrower about safety, tells him to take weapons and bids farewell.

The weapons, Taeyong does not take even a single one of them. He wants to be normal around Olivia. If she discovers what he’s doing for a living, she might run away again. And Taeyong knows for sure she can do whatever it takes to get away once she puts her mind to it.

He’s on the way to the hotel to hang out with the two ladies again. Jennie’s a chatterbox, the designated storyteller for the whole day. She has no problems blabbering about anything under the sun, though her top choice of topic is how she mooches money off of rich, divorced men. Taeyong calls her a sponge.

Olivia is still speechless, literally. She makes a sound when she’s surprised, confused, or when something on the television tickles her fancy but they all come out weird to the hearing. Like it’s been a long time since she last spoke a word. The way she eats is strange as well as she pokes a finger in her mouth every now and then to shift the food inside. Taeyong only pretends not to point it out because she’s already uncomfortable when he’s around.

His phone buzzes excessively in the holder. Lee Sungjong’s name flashes on the screen. That quiet man working for him rarely talks out of the workplace so if he’s the one calling, it must be _very_ important.

“What is it?” asks the knife thrower right away after picking up the call.

 _“Boss, how’s Invictus?”_ Sungjong asks in his gentle tone. Despite being a copy of Taeyong’s previous job in Red Phoenix, Sungjong manages to sound like he had no crimes under his belt.

Taeyong makes a noise of amusement. “ _You’_ re asking?”

_“Yes. Is it wrong?”_

“No, but the last notable thing you asked of me was if you could take Kim Myungsoo.”

It’s been a while since that name rolled off his tongue. Not gonna lie, it sounds so foreign to Taeyong now.

Sungjong takes seconds to respond. _“…If you’re curious about him, he’s alive. I would tell you if he wasn’t. And I’m not performing magic on him if that’s what you want to ask next.”_

Oh, his team really fears nothing. The Korean squad might dislike him but they would never openly slam him like how Sungjong just did, and how Jennie does on a daily basis.

He can’t help but chuckles. “What makes you think I wanna know shit about Kim Myungsoo? You could kill him and I’d tell you where to get the best coffin.”

The traffic light turns red. Taeyong taps his fingers rhythmically on the steering wheel, glancing to the next car and tugging his shades down to peer at the driver – a grandpa. Should he suddenly honk for fun?

Nah. Might cause road rage or untimely death.

_“Would you say the same thing if I tell you why I’m asking about Invictus?”_

He raises a brow, middle finger pushing up the sunglasses. “You sound so cryptic I almost peed my pants in anticipation.” Sarcasm comes out of him naturally, but he can’t deny that his interest is suddenly piqued. “It depends. You’re not the type to talk to me out of work. This gotta be _majestic,_ Sungjong.”

_“I was with Chanyeol earlier. The idiot forgot to tell you something and was too scared to confess himself that he chickened out and begged me to tell you.”_

“Mm?” The traffic light turns green and he steps on the gas, wanting to get out of the highway quickly. “Spill it.”

He then listens to the other ask him where he was during a specific date. Taeyong remembers that day because it was when he broke out of the practice room by gunning down the door and had a steamy sex with his husband. Taeyong tries not to think of it too much. Can’t pop a boner on the road and there’s no one to relieve it. “Believe it or not I was locked at home, courtesy of Jeong Jaehyun. Why is this important?”

What he hears next brings that sneering voice in his head back.

 _“Fort dropped by at Red Phoenix. Chanyeol was the one who saw him and took him to the bar to wait. He said not to call you anymore if you were busy as he wanted to unwind.”_ A scoff comes from the other line. Because Sungjong thinks it’s _bullshit_.

Taeyong tries to reason with the sneering voice. Coincidences exist for a reason though he’s not one to give most of it chances, jumping right into conclusions.

“The guy’s looking for spaces to buy for his restaurant. You don’t have to tell me just because we’re pa–”

Sungjong cuts him off. _“Chanyeol was drunk that time. He only remembered today that Fort asked him about the hostage.”_

A lump lodges itself in the back of Taeyong’s throat. He remains quiet as he makes a turn to the right, mind clouded with different conclusions to the other’s insinuation.

Sungjong takes the silence as a cue to say more. _“Chanyeol’s stupid drunk ass was too far gone to say that Andre Caron is already dead, and then soon enough we got cops raiding the casino specifically for Andre Caron. Sir…no one else aside from us, and the hostage’s mother knew about the abduction.”_

“Irina Caron was taken by Dragonaire and asked if she wanted her son out of Red Phoenix.”

_Come on, Taeyong. You know, half of your mind knows it can also not be Dragonaire. Why focus on what the naked eye sees? The devil changes forms._

_“Calculating the days, Irina Caron was taken the day Fort went to Red Phoenix.”_

Taeyong’s heart drops to his feet, so heavy that he stomps on the gas and narrowly misses a pedestrian.

“Fucking hell.” His grip on the steering wheel hardens as the wish to crush it with his bare hands grows by the second.

 _“I don’t know how Dragonaire is involved in this but I suggest you look somewhere else. Sir,_ ” Sungjong calls him with urgency. “ _You might be hunting down the wrong enemy.”_

Nothing is impossible anymore. He knows he has to welcome what his head echoes since the last call Fort made. It didn’t sound like Fort worried about Invictus nor Garnet. It sounded like he was making sure Invictus is really having a hard time.

When he first had the intuition, it was because he was reading too much into it. But now, with dots popping out one by one waiting to be connected, he’s sure is intuition has is justified.

What about the previous mishaps? Skipping them now might make them lose another dot.

“Are you with Myungsoo? Give him the phone.”

Thuds resonate from the phone. Sungjong must be walking. Taeyong turns off the stereo to hear everything loud and clear.

_“Taeyong?”_

Hearing his former assistant’s voice takes him back to the last time they were fighting in the cabin.

“Kim Myungsoo. It’s been a while and your head has probably gone bonkers from what the fuck ever Sungjong has done to you but I want you to rake it right now for that time we had those two major shipping errors.”

_“The ones I reported to you but you didn’t bother to check?”_

“I got no time for derisions, Myungsoo.”

_“I just can’t believe that you would still need me after literally throwing me away after I served you. It didn’t make you happy and you still had me tortured. Is your husband not very helpful?”_

Sungjong hisses a threat in the background.

“He would be if he was the one who fixed that mess. Get on it _now_.”

Myungsoo sighs. _“You’re lucky my head is still intact in spite of everything. The first error, the helicopter was being repaired so I had to think of a way for the packages to be shipped out on time. Since that’s the French HQ’s business and the shipping progress goes straight to our system, I updated it right away and changed the status in our record. You won’t see it now if you check it in the system because I fixed it right away. Actually, I wrote a report for transparency. I think those papers ended up in the trash instead because if you checked them, you would know.”_

Now that Myungsoo is not scared of him, he’s talking as contemptuous as he can.

“The same thing happened again for the next shipment. Don’t tell me the helicopter was still broken.”

_“No. But there was no pilot unavailable. He didn’t come back to work and it took us days to find a new one. While there was no pilot, I did the same thing I did for the previous shipment hitch.”_

“Then did it say in the report who shipped the packages?”

_“No. The system does not require that information, but I told you in person. You were not listening. If you were, you would know I called Garnet if they could ship it again for us.”_

The disappearance of the pilot could possibly be _that person_ ’s handiwork. Taeyong’s deep, hollow laugh fills the car, its dark aura reaching even the other line.

“It looks like I’d committed a few but nonetheless fatal mistakes.”

 _“Thrice.”_ Myungsoo corrects him and proceeds to enumerate those mistakes, amusing the knife thrower in the midst of his baleful laughter. _“You didn’t do your job as a kingpin, you got rid of the one who just reminded you of the critical information you asked for and you chose him when he can’t even be useful to you.”_

Taeyong’s blue eyes blazes at the other’s scornful jibe against Jaehyun. “Fuck off, Myungsoo. Are you still hung up on me?”

_“…I just wanted to tell you you’re more stupid than you think you are.”_

The call ends with a series of annoying beeps. Sungjong must have dropped it. Taeyong, in his bitterness, grabs the phone and throws it against the dashboard. The sound it makes is an alarming thud before it hits the floor of the car.

Looking up, he realizes he’s getting closer to the hotel. But Sungjong’s confession makes him abruptly swerve and fortunately, there are no other cars following him. Taeyong counterflows before taking the nearest U-turn. He reaches for the phone with his foot and picks it up, dialing Kim Jaejoong’s number.

“Tell me you’re in Garnet.” He barks at the doctor as soon as Jaejoong answers.

_“It’s your lucky day. Why?”_

“Is it true that Garnet has postponed operations?

_“Uh, yes. There are only a few people here and I have to finish something, so.”_

“What are you even doing there?”

Jaejoong takes a look at his phone before pinching it back between his ear and shoulder to continue sterilizing surgery tools. “ _Taeyong, who do you think cut up bodies and took out the organs Red Phoenix sold in the black market before?”_

Taeyong momentarily forgets about his irritation. “Incredible. Truly worthy of your ranking. Where does your loyalty lie, Jaej?”

The doctor frowns. “ _What do you mean?”_

“Even though I hated going to you to patch me up and I hated your lectures, I still chose you out of everyone else to put in a strong, stable group when Red Phoenix died before you can say knife. Now, where does your loyalty lie?”

Jaejoong drops the tools in a pan, the metallic clunk grating their eardrums. “ _Do you really have to ask? I would do whatever you want me to, as a thank you.”_

A small smile blooms on the kingpin’s face. “I’m glad you still remember where you came from. You can thank me now by stopping the CCTV from recording and sneaking me inside Garnet. Your leader is somehow keeping me out of there.”

“ _Are you there yet?”_

“Would take me an hour, at least. You got time to clean up and do what I told you. I’ll let you know when I’m near.”

Taeyong hangs up. Jaejoong stares at his phone once again and puts it back in his scrub suit’s pocket before quickly finishing up his task. One hour will give him a lot of things to do.

With the droplets of blood that carelessly hit the tiled floor gone, he snaps a new pair of gloves on and pushes the surgery table back to its place. It’s clean, free of the cadaver. The body bag lies on another table and the organs are stuffed in the freezer. As there are nothing more to do inside, he pockets a syringe filled with anesthesia and changes his shoes, leaving the dirty pair in the locker before heading to the security watch room.

The one manning it is asleep, would you look at that. Jaejoong leans in, heart thudding in his chest as he listens to the other’s breathing before quickly uncapping the syringe and injecting the drug, lengthening the other’s unconsciousness then makes his move to disable all cameras from recording as well as deleting the tapes that caught him. He finishes as fast as he can and when he leaves the watch room, the man is ultimately knocked out.

Hopefully he remains to slack even until Taeyong leaves the HQ.

“What are you gonna do here?” Jaejoong hisses as he pulls Taeyong in from the back entrance. “If Fort doesn’t want you coming, then it’s dangerous, isn’t it?”

Taeyong giggles and takes the doctor’s hand off of his arm, following Jaejoong’s lead inside the building. “Putting the puzzle pieces together.” He looks around, noticing the severe lack of Garnet members. “It should be more alarming if danger doesn’t follow you. It’s literally our silhouette. The CCTV?”

“On but not recording. I deleted some of them too.”

“Good. You’re curious, aren’t you? I think it’s Jung Yunho.”

Jaejoong glances at him questioningly. “You think he’s what?”

They continue walking and taking the elevator even without knowing where exactly they’re going. By taking the VIP elevator, no one is going to catch them.

“The one fucking up Invictus.” Taeyong casually says, pulling up the hood of his jacket and tightening the drawstrings. “He went to Bordeaux the day our captive’s mother was taken by who we still think is Dragonaire. I know, okay. Dragonaire again? But she saw a tapestry with Kim Taejun and Kim Jaeseok’s dragon tattoo. No one outside of Invictus knew about the hostage, aside from his mother. And aside from Fort.” The elevator pings and its doors open. Jaejoong checks both sides of the hallway before gesturing for Taeyong to follow. “Now I know why he’s so fucking nosy. The thing is, I have no idea why he knows of the dragon tattoo.”

Jaejoong stops walking and looks at the knife thrower with a conflicted expression. “Are you sure it’s him?”

It’s only natural that the doctor would doubt all of it. He may have denied it before, but anyone with eyes can see his unexplainable attraction towards the kingpin of Garnet. It’s possibly because of Fort accepting him as a part of the org.

“Don’t let your infatuation blind you, Jaej. I just need that investigation from the Korean squad. Whatever they’ll get from it might finally sew the threads together. Are you familiar with all the rooms here?”

“I can confidently say yes, I am.”

“How many offices does Jung Yunho have? I’m looking for something?” Taeyong’s wide eyes roam around as he childishly bites on his thumb.

Jaejoong wets his lips and looks away. “Two. The main one is where he’s usually at; you know… where the meetings are held.”

“Where is the other one?”

Their eyes meet, Taeyong arches a brow and Jaejoong gives in with a sigh, cocking his head to tell the knife thrower to follow him. “I’ll show you.”

They end up outside the main office. Jaejoong tries to push the door open but it doesn’t budge. “Well, it’s locked.” Taeyong is not given the chance to speak when the sound of stilettos clacking on the floor reaches them. The doctor pushes his companion to the fire exit, hiding just in time.

A woman carrying a file folder punches in a code to get inside as Taeyong peeks furtively, memorizing the passcode. She merely spends a good ten seconds in the room before she’s out again, the doors to the office locking with a soft click.

As soon as she’s off the floor, Jaejoong tugs him out of their hiding spot. “You saw the passcode, didn’t you?”

“Yeah. Don’t you know it?” Taeyong easily presses the series of numbers and smirks when they are given access to the office.

Jaejoong checks the hallway once again in case someone has seen them before closing the room and walking over to the large bookshelf adjacent to the desk.

“I get escorted when I have to come here.” With a hard, careful push, Jaejoong thrusts the bookshelf to the side.

It appears that behind it is not just a wall like anyone would expect, but a door that leads to another room.

Taeyong gawks, scanning the main room before looking back at the secret one it’s keeping behind rows and rows of books. “This is classic.”

Loitering in the same spot won’t show him what he wants to see, so Taeyong walks in the second room after entering the same passcode, activating the motion sensor lights when they detected his presence. It’s significantly smaller than the main office, easy to move around as the only things inside are the common seats, a desk, a cabinet and a large Renaissance painting hanging on the wall.

The only thing inside that stands out as it looks out of place, incongruous with the design and layout of the room is the tapestry of a dragon draped on the right side.

Jaejoong blinks a few times, his gaze shifting from the tapestry to Taeyong. “Is that…?”

The Invictus kingpin nods, inspecting the tapestry closely. Intricacy-wise, it may or may not be the exact replica of the tattoo but this is the general image that he can remember. Fort has an exceptional memory, as sharp as the blade Taeyong wants to stab through the man’s throat.

“Who else can go here?” He asks Jaejoong as he feels the texture of the tapestry’s material between his fingers.

Jaejoong gulps, standing next to Taeyong to stare at the menacing dragon. His heart pumps furiously and the emotions swirling in him clash against each other, trying to see which of them dominates – anger, disappointment, and incredulity. “Only Fort…and Max. I saw it once when I was called to check on the list of body types to approve…before chopping.”

The corner of the tapestry is crumpled within the knife thrower’s iron grip. Taeyong stares at it, yet his gaze sees more than the fabric being torn in the heat of a strong desire to wreak havoc. He sees not the dark wool weaved meticulously but the sight of Lee Namgyu convulsing as high voltage electricity swarm his nerves, Olivia going through the excruciating pain of having her skin carved, Léonie being feasted on by sickening men, Red Phoenix losing from its own game, the fights he and Jaehyun had because of unrelenting pride and misplaced accusations and Invictus’ future put to a savage risk.

All because of Dragonaire and Fort’s confusing relations to it.

“This can only mean he saw the tattoo personally.” Taeyong’s voice comes out husky.

_Personally._

_Someone kept Olivia after she was treated like a ragdoll by Dragonaire._

_Coincidentally, she’s in Paris._

_Paris, the base of Garnet which keeps a piece of Dragonaire with it._

Just a little more. One or two more dots and it will create a constellation of secrets that will soon be revealed, a snake shredding its sullied skin.

Such venomous serpent is always good at being invisible and transparent at the same time.

He unlatches from the tapestry in disgust and looks at the desk behind them. “I need to know _how._ ”

The familiar chuff of a chopper calls them out of the secret room. Its loud noise indicates that it’s close to the building. Taeyong hurries to the huge windows, slightly pulls the curtain enough for him to see the rotorcraft land on the helipad. Soon, a man unloads a box from it, carrying them to the inspection room at the basement.

“I thought operations are postponed until Fort comes back?”

“…That’s what I thought too since he said he’s gonna be busy in New York. Hold up.” Jaejoong pulls Taeyong close by the arm, staring nonplussed at the large box the man puts to the ground. “Isn’t that–”

“From Invictus.” Taeyong continues in his poison-laced tone while eyeing the initials _IV_ on the box. “This is why he doesn’t want us to stay here. As I thought. The evidence would show itself on its own time.”

Jaejoong steps back, clutching his forehead as he paces back and forth with a troubled expression. “What are you going to do now?”

“Nothing yet.” Taeyong leaves the window and faces the doctor with a radiant grin – the kind that means opposite of what it seems. “When the Korean squad gets back to us, I will know. You will join me until the end, right Jaej?”

Despite the war of his mind and heart, Kim Jaejoong composes himself like a diamond rank should. He says yes to Taeyong, to the one that has his loyalty.

A diamond rank from Red Phoenix will never go astray from where he came from. A diamond rank will never betray the reason he’s thriving. Lee Taeyong is the last and realest legacy of Red Phoenix, the group that appreciated him for his worth.

Kim Jaejoong may be working for Garnet, for a different kingpin, but his story starts and ends with Red Phoenix and Invictus’ ace, with the man who cannot be ranked for his strength can never be measured.

Even if it means causing his own heartbreak.

Dusk passes by in Korea. Parked a few streets from Park Minkyung’s house is a black van where Doyoung, Johnny, Ten and Sicheng wait and observe. This part of the town is quiet as most residents are old people. Since they arrived, only two were seen outside. It will be easy for them to do the investigation.

It will be easier if Nakamoto Yuta is not terribly late.

“I thought Yuta’s coming straight from his place? Where is he?” Doyoung asks irritatedly, itching to just get off and start even if they’re incomplete.

Johnny drops his phone when it meets yet another unanswered call. It rings, but Yuta is not picking up. “He’s not answering my calls. Not replying to my texts too.”

Doyoung spits. “He’s being a nuisance.”

“He’s being a notorious playboy.”

All three heads turn to Sicheng. It’s unusual for the arsonist to make snide remarks especially against the Japanese. Winwin used to be quiet, only interested in his mobile games yet he’s totally different now after the fallout with Yuta. Yuta’s pastime used to be watching anime with his best friend way back when things were fine in Red Phoenix. Sicheng was the first person to answer him right when he asked that question only a fellow avid fan would know. It didn’t look like it, but they understood each other best.

Who would’ve thought that it would also be the reason they wouldn’t look each other in the eyes now?

Sicheng shakes his head, smiling softly. “I’m not affected, so don’t give me that look. But it’s affecting our investigation.” He says, internally hoping he sounds convincing enough.

Doyoung sighs as he checks his watch, stomping exasperatedly as the small hand ticked by and finishes another rotation, eats up another minute of their lives which could’ve spent by pulling the answers out of their targets rather than waiting for someone they aren’t sure of if he’s arriving or not.

“We’ve been waiting for thirty minutes. Not three minutes, guy. Thirty. Half an hour.” He wears his glasses with a huff. “If he doesn’t arrive in 5, we’ll start it without him. We didn’t sleep just to find where Park Minkyung is hiding and he’s wasting all of our effort.”

“Hey.” Ten taps Doyoung’s shoulder and points outside. “Isn’t that Yuta’s car?”

“Well, speak of the devil and he shall appear.” Johnny tells all of them to get out of the van, locking it and pocketing the key just as Yuta approaches.

Sicheng pauses in his tracks for a second, biting his lip. “Go to the house. I’ll talk to Yuta first.”

“Are you sure?” Johnny asks, eyes speaking to the other two as he senses an awkward tension. “Well, we’ll go now. If you don’t hear a gunshot within a minute then it means you can come in.”

Ten slaps his arm, berating him and reiterating to the whole group that they will do this as peaceful as possible. The three of them then head off, and Winwin turns in his heal to face his fear.

Not Yuta per se, but confronting Yuta.

“What are you doing?” Sicheng offhandedly asks.

Yuta’s brows furrow in confusion, not understanding as to why he’s being cornered. “I’m joining the investigation?”

“Oh, you actually remembered it?” The arsonist mocks. “You are late. Terribly so.” His gaze pans in to the smudge of pink on the Japanese’s jaw, swiping it with a finger and chuckling at the texture of lipstick on the pad of his thumb. “You insisted to come straight from your place because you had a whore waiting.”

Yuta backs up, offended. “What’s the fucking problem, Sicheng? I’m here now, right?”

“Yeah but we could’ve started at the time we all agreed to meet! Why are you being obtuse?”

“Why are you acting like a mother? It’s not like I’m doing anything wrong with fucking the whores I _paid,_ take note. I’ve been a fan of women all my life. Why are you getting angry now? _Oh._ I get it.” Yuta sardonically chuckles, scratching the corner of his mouth while looking at the other affrontingly. “You wish it was you.”

Sicheng flares up. “No, Yuta!”

“Then what? The only thing that will explain you getting pissed at me messing around is because you miss those times you wouldn’t berate me because it was you I was messing around with. Isn’t that right? Did you hit your head, Sicheng? What are you gonna do now, backhand me again?”

The arsonist turns around, takes a deep breath and faces Yuta with so much anger in his eyes. “You! Stop being full of yourself! Stop gaslighting me! That’s not what I mean!”

“Gaslighting. Who was using me for their own benefit? Who lead me on? Who made me think I had a chance and then made an excuse that made me look like I was wrong?”

Sicheng is starting to lose his cool, cursing at the Japanese in his mother tongue. This is not what he’s aiming for. The discussion he wants is going the wrong way.

Yuta shushes him, scanning the surrounding for any eavesdropper. “Keep quiet. I thought you don’t like me that way? You rejected me because you thought I was just distracted and I would revert to my old ways. And you are right. I’m doing what you thought I would do. You left me no choice.” He sighs, forcing himself to stay calm.

“I’m confused, Sicheng. The others don’t mind me. We’re all adults that do crimes for a living. What’s wrong with me bedding women? You’re not jealous, are you? You’re not suddenly in love with me, are you? Because hell, you’re too damn late.”

Sicheng grits his teeth, eyes hard. “Don’t make me punch you.”

“I liked you better when you weren’t talking.”

“If I don’t speak, if I don’t call you out, you’re going to ruin yourself.” Sicheng trembles in bottled up anger, yet his voice betrays what he really feels. “They’re not calling you out because it doesn’t hurt them. The way you’re losing yourself doesn’t hurt them – because they’re not your best friends, Yuta. I _am_ your best friend and I hurt for you because I am a part of why you’re doing this. You’re messing around not because you want to. You’re messing around because you want to piss me off. I know you best out of the team.”

“I did wrong, I somehow led you on to protect myself but I didn’t mean to hurt you. It would be the last thing I would want to do to you.” The arsonist takes a few deep breaths, raising a hand to stop Yuta from talking.

Yuta worries genuinely now, hating the way Sicheng acts at the moment.

“It doesn’t mean I don’t care about you. Yuta, what happened? They might not say anything but they’re already irritated at you for neglecting yourself and your work. We would be able to do this without you but we waited for you because we’re a team. Don’t break our trust, please. You’re being selfish right now.”

Sicheng sniffles, frowning as he realizes he’s already getting uncharacteristically emotional. “If you hate me, then hate me. But it’s personal so don’t drag Invictus with you. It’s chaotic in France, and our kingpins are doing everything for us to live. They’re waiting for what we’ll get out of this investigation. Is this the best we can do, huh?”

Yuta sags in guilt, running a hand through his hair. His apologetic gaze runs over Sicheng for a moment before diverting somewhere that won’t make him feel too shitty about himself. He admits that their performance is embarrassing Jaehyun – they’re usually faster and more productive when they work together, when they help Doyoung, but he didn’t realize that it will only take one of them to affect the entirety of their effort negatively.

Winwin goes on in his tirade. “Is this the best we can do after Jaehyun allowed Invictus to be potentially taken down, the fruit of his blood, sweat and tears? After Taeyong put himself out there to save us not once but twice when Dragonaire wanted his head, when Cygnus and Venandi played us like fools? He got nothing out of that and he will get nothing if we continue to stall.”

“He got something out of it, though.” Yuta swallows a lump of regrets. “He kept our team complete.”

Somehow, the arsonist is pacified by that reminder. They are yet to collectively see Taeyong differently. They might have given flowery messages during the kingpins’ wedding celebration because it would make Jaehyun happy, but he wonders; when will the time come that they’re going to forget the ancient bitterness inside of them and let bygones be bygones for good? They have all become civil because of Jaehyun’s relationship with him, but deep in their hearts the prejudice stays. The only one that managed to fully accept Taeyong as one of them is Jaehyun. Yuta and Doyoung might have openly acknowledged his position as a kingpin, but it’s different from being _one of them._

They will need a push to do the same. He remembers they only disapproved of Taeyong because he’s overbearing, because he’s the best, because it was the rule – detest the knife thrower to be in the circle. It’s painfully childish to think of, and they all have matured in their own ways.

By sticking to that change in maturity, they have to start with themselves. Winwin has to start with confronting what scares him most. And it’s not Taeyong. He lost that fear the day he told the enemies the nutcase would kill them all for him and it happened.

What scares him most is losing the person that helped him survive through old trauma and nightmares.

“Then don’t waste his effort. Get yourself together. I don’t want to fight you anymore, Yuta.”

It’s indeed draining to harbor such ill feelings especially when it’s towards someone he cherishes. Hopefully, things will be back to the way they were before and they all heal from their own, unspoken wounds.

Yuta nods, clenching and unclenching his fists. He wants to reach for his best friend and pull him in a hug, but it can wait. They’re wasting so much time by doing this out of the blue.

“I’m sorry.”

“Yeah, it’s been a long time coming.” Sicheng lets go of a longsuffering sigh before roughly patting the Japanese on the back, pushing him forward. “Come on. We’ve already talked and I’m glad. We can’t miss the show in Park’s house, though.”

“Get out of my house!” is what the duo catches on when they enter Park Minkyung’s house. As the widow of a kingpin, the place she’s staying at is tremendously underwhelming.

Humility born from remorse?

Johnny blocks Doyoung with an arm. “We’re not here to get revenge as you are accusing as of. We just want answers.”

“I don’t believe you. Please leave us alone! My husband is dead and that’s enough atonement for his sins!”

A man tugs Park Minkyung to his side in a protective stance. It’s the other son that they saw on several photos. “Get out of the house, _please._ My mother is innocent. Whatever dad did to you, he already paid for it. You already took two of us, what more could you possibly want?”

The mother and son wear desperation like second skin and speak desperation like native poetry, alluring but only captivating those who like it – and they’re not the squad. 

Johnny clicks his tongue in annoyance. “I told you, we just want to ask–.”

The man takes them by surprise by pulling out a gun, holding it with a trembling aim. “How do you want to get shot as an answer?” His mother cries in the background, clutching her son’s shirt.

Ten and Yuta responds with guns pointing back at him, shaking the latter’s determination.

“Don’t make this hard for all of us.” Johnny tries to soothe the tension. “Someone is sabotaging our group and the only clue we have is your father’s and brother’s tattoo. I know we wiped out Dragonaire. So it’s either a member is seeking revenge in their kingpin’s stead or it’s from his family. Put your gun down, you can explain yourself to us, and then we’ll leave you unscathed. We take pride in our words.”

Park Minkyung scornfully jabs a finger at the squad’s direction. “My husband and son’s killer is one of you! You are lying to us!”

“He’s not one of–”

“He’s one of us.” Sicheng corrects, face determined. “He’s one of us but he won’t touch you and your son. We promise you that. Just help us and you will never see us again.”

The son slowly puts his gun down when he fails to see deception in the intruder’s eyes. He puts the weapon back in its holster, Ten and Yuta doing the same, and quickly pulls Park Minkyung to the side, arguing with her. It doesn’t take them long to agree with being interrogated, but they both make sure that no more of this will happen in the future.

Doyoung silently takes a seat and eyes Park Minkyung, going straight to what they came there for. “Sit down and let’s discuss this as civil and humane as possible. I’m going to start now. Do you have relatives who have the tattoo?”

Park Minkyung responds shakily. “N-no. It’s only found on the four of us. We don’t want to take part in organized crime but the tattoo is a symbol that we are the family of Kim Taejun and we were to be protected. My son here, Inseok was going to be the heir, but he hadn’t formally joined yet. “

Sicheng excuses himself to take a look outside and guard, listening in on the conversation from the doorway.

“Have any of you gone to Paris recently?”

“No. Since my husband was killed, we lived in fear. You must think we are crazy to stay here if we want to hide, but I had been crippled with fear that I don’t even want to get out of the house. On top of that, I didn’t want to move on…”

Yuta speaks next, wanting to redeem himself. “Apparently, someone is familiar with the tattoo and recreated it on a tapestry. I’m sure a member of it, or one of your relatives close to you would be capable of doing it.”

Park Inseok answers the Japanese. “My mother is telling the truth. Besides, Dragonaire is literally non-existent now. Without a leader, even if there is still a member out there, they will be immobile without enough power to execute anything. We have no reasons, no resources to instigate a fight with you.”

His mother then follows, “It could be someone my husband worked with.”

Doyoung shares a look with the squad before clearing his throat. “Please elaborate.”

Park Minkyung takes a deep breath, gathers some strength from her son’s hold on her hand and begins to spill the details she’s regretfully aware of. “My husband met other people like him, like you. He used to fly overseas to hopefully close deals but to no avail. I don’t think these people, who possibly saw his tattoo would suddenly use it against you without knowing the significance of using Dragonaire’s name. Unless they personally hold a grudge against you and the easiest way is through my husband…”

She shudders as Kim Doyoung’s eyes darken with intent to know, to get to the bottom of this.

“You know more than that, don’t you?”

The woman presses a hand on her chest, rubbing. One can only imagine the pressure she’s put into. “…We don’t want to be involved. If we tell you, please don’t let this person know.”

Johnny quickly nods in assurance. They can’t afford to have the woman suffering a breakdown, or let it happen just as they’re about to uncover the truth. “We promise you. You will be able to help us take this person down.”

“…I blamed this person the most when Jaeseok was killed. But my husband said we could trust them. Taejun was too blinded of the promise he was given and trusted this person too much.” Park Minkyung sobs once again. “This person is…”

The truth is then unraveled one by one, detail by detail, horror by horror. It renders the whole squad speechless, Ten feels his legs wobble as he cannot fathom the weight of the revelation and falls on the armrest of the seat Doyoung occupies. The shock hits them like the crack of thunder, electrifying and paralyzing.

“Holy shit.” Yuta mumbles. He suddenly wants to strike himself for being outrageously gullible. They got played too fucking well. Turns out, this is not their game. They are the pieces being pushed forward and backward unsuspectingly, waiting for the inevitable checkmate.

“We have to tell them right now.” Ten announces.

“This is worse than the time Lee Namgyu called Taeyong his son.” Doyoung lifelessly chuckles as his heart vigorously thunders. “I think I’m going to collapse. It will be better to tell them in person.” He gets up and helps Ten to his feet. “Johnny, Yuta and I will head to France as soon as possible. Ten, Winwin, stay to handle the transactions. Will that be fine?”

The two easily agree.

“Someone’s got to say to keep an eye. There’s a chance the headquarters is being spied.” Ten says, glancing at the pair they interrogated. “And not the spies we were expecting.”

Still shaken by what they heard, and eager to deliver the news to the kingpins, Doyoung bows in gratitude to Park Minkyung and Park Inseok. “Thank you for helping us. We are not good people but you can trust us that you’re not going to be involved. Consider us dead when we step out of your home. We apologize for intruding, but it must be done.”

The squad then leaves, sends a message to Jaehyun about going to France as they quickly arrange a private flight. They can’t wait to burst the bubble of deceit they’re unknowingly living in.

When Taeyong picks up Jennie and Olivia, he has already pushed the awful taste of his recent discovery to the very pit of his stomach – he can vomit it out when he finally receives the worst from the squad’s investigation. That Invictus team reports straight to Jaehyun, so this time, he’s the one without any idea about the team’s progress, whether they have found people to ask or not. Anyhow, it’s not his obligation to ask if they’re not updating.

Lunch is eaten at the hotel before they leave for Honfleur. Jennie’s the one that presented to pack up for both hers and Olivia’s stuff, which isn’t really a lot. They have shopped once for Olivia’s clothes and the latter begged her brother not to spend so much on her.

The drive to Honfleur takes a little over two hours. One of the best hotels the small town of Honfleur can offer is La Petite Folie. The building may not look very special on the outside, resembling many buildings in France but the rooms are definitely exemplary with a combination of vintage and millennial interior and fresh color scheme, worthy of the good reviews online.

Taeyong stays in a separate room with one bed. They stay in the hotel until dusk as the ladies take a proper rest, only heading out when they’re freshly showered and changed, ready to be a part of the annual Shrimp festival.

Since the trip is spontaneous, none of them has an itinerary in hand. Googling the attractions is their best option if they want to take a break from the festivity.

Jennie whips her phone out and scrolls through the most popular tourist spots. At first she looks bored as hell, like it’s just another cleaning day at Red Phoenix until she sees something that literally has her eyes sparkling. “Oli, look. You wanna go here?”

Olivia stops walking and checks what Jennie wants to show before smiling at the latter, approving of her choice of introduction to Honfleur.

It’s already joyous out on the streets with an ongoing parade of locals dancing to the music produced by the drums, trumpets and other instruments they have. Taeyong harshly pulls up his hoodie and wears a mask, wanting to depart from the merry atmosphere as much as he can. Going to Honfleur may be his idea, but the agenda is to let his sister (and probably Jennie) have fun, not him.

So he just follows the ladies, grudgingly carrying their backpack. “What the fuck is in here? Why do you have a bag?”

“Eh, don’t you know that ladies always have to have a purse wherever they go? Stuff might happen and we need to retouch our makeup, something like that.”

“This is not a fucking purse, Jennie. It’s a backpack.”

“Stop complaining. It’s not even heavy. I only put a tumbler, my makeup kit, an umbrella, and a raincoat just in case. Oh you know the weather. It’s annoyingly irregular.” Jennie continues to walk ahead with Olivia who’s typically quiet, content with looking around and watching the locals celebrate.

Taeyong then unwraps a lollipop and happily sucks on it. It’s the only thing that will make the walk enjoyable for him since he has no one to pair up with.

He kinda misses Jaehyun now. What’s he doing with the twins?

Speak of the devil, the sharpshooter sends him a text. Taeyong feels the violent buzzing against his buttock and pulls out his phone.

> _Doyoung said they’re heading here. That’s it, nothing else. Do you think they finally got something? – J_
> 
> _I don’t know. If they didn’t say anything, it’s best to wait for it. But it’s probably important if they’re flying. They might want to tell you in person. It’s hard to explain on the phone, you know. You tend to get hysterical. – T_
> 
> _Read your own text. Why does it sound like I’m the only one who should worry? Can’t you come back now? – J_
> 
> _Oops, my bad. That’s not what I mean. I’m expecting they’d go straight to you. When are they landing, though? Call me when it’s urgent. I know I said I’ll return tomorrow but if they arrive early and they got deets to spill then I’ll come back. They’re not yet here, so I’m gonna be busy for now. What are you doing? – T_
> 
> _Fine. Are you in a safe place? You’re not doing anything dangerous, are you? I really shouldn’t be letting you go without knowing what you’re doing. I’m still worried and I can’t help it. But if you can text me, then I guess there are no guns pointed at you : D There’s nothing to do here because you’re not with me, lol. – J_
> 
> _Good. Be a good pup and just relax, dimple boy. And don’t sext me. How dare you be so shameless at your age. And ‘lol’? Really? You typed that with a straight face, didn’t you? Why don’t you be a responsible adult and feed your kids? Pft. – T_
> 
> _Sexting has no age limit and just to let you know, they’re done eating. Aw, Ethan. Are you being a worried father? [****.jpeg] – J_

Taeyong clicks on the photo. It’s the twins sitting together in bed, watching cartoons. Jaehyun snapped it behind them.

> _I’m only going to be a father if you get miraculously pregnant. It’s not impossible, is it? The way you were moaning out my name last time, I won’t be surprised if you suddenly test positive. – T_
> 
> _!!! You said no sexting! Tsk. Whatever. When they arrive and you need to be here, please come back. I don’t care if I’m interrupting. What you are doing there is something you decided on your own. I miss you, by the way. – J_
> 
> _Yeah, sure. You’re gross. - T_

He’s about to press _back_ when his hood gets pulled down, and his loose hair gets all over his face when the wind blows past them. Jennie has the gall to giggle at her stupid antics.

“I’ve been calling your name! Who are you texting?”

“What makes you think I am texting?”

Jennie raises a brow. “You were smiling. A little bit. But it was a smile.” Taking advantage of the knife thrower being distracted, she snatches his phone and snoops, gasping when she sees the twins’ picture. “They’re so adorable! I miss them! Oli, look. These are you nephew and niece.”

“Shut up, they’re not.”

Jennie ignores him and proceeds to show Olivia the photo. The twins’ faces are not seen, but her stiff expression softens at the sight of the kids. Soon, she glances uncertainly at her brother, eyes questioning.

“They’re not my kids. Jaehyun kept them. He’s playing house.” Taeyong pats his pockets for a hairband and ends up empty handed. The wind blows again, messing up the dyed strands.

“Don’t listen to him. Jaehyun is his husband. Jaehyun adopted the twins so technically they’re Taeyong’s as well.” Jennie rolls her eyes and tosses the phone back to her boss who glares at her before pocketing the gadget. She huffs and hooks her arm with Olivia, continuing their short journey to the first tourist spot.

Which is…a church.

“Are you kidding me.” Taeyong says rhetorically as he gazes up the historical church before them. The doors are still open, but he doesn’t dare to follow the two inside. Olivia, he remembers her to be a believer. Jennie will most probably come out with a third-degree burn.

 _Saint Catherine’s Church_ is Honfleur’s main monument. When the town’s name is mentioned, anyone familiar with it will automatically think of the church as one of its most memorable attractions.

Historically, it was built in 15 century to replace a stone church that was wrecked in the Hundred Years’ War. The new version is entirely made of wood. It is the largest wooden church in France.

Looking at it from the outside, Taeyong recalls a distant memory. It was when his spine tattoo was polished. The tattoo parlor he went to was close to a church. Those were the rare days he was allowed to go out of Red Phoenix without a guard dog to make sure he wouldn’t go berserk.

That was a memory he can smell, quite literally, until now. Because when he stepped out of the parlor, he bumped into someone. The boy, or man, judging from the depth of his voice profusely apologized without daring to look at him in the eyes before scurrying away.

Taeyong can’t remember his face. But he can remember how good the guy smelled. He could tell the stranger was wearing an expensive perfume. 

Why his heart skips a beat at the memory, he doesn’t know.

Jennie and Olivia come out of the church ten minutes later.

“Ethan! Why didn’t you come in?”

The knife thrower impassively looks at Jennie and gives her the middle finger. “I’m not keen on reuniting with God after he clipped my wings and sent me to hell. I’m amazed you’re not smoldered yet.”

“You’re so dramatic. I’m his favorite. Oh!” Jennie exclaims as she slaps a hand on her forehead. “You have my bag! I forgot to wear it!”

Taeyong is already handing it to her when she waves her hand dismissively. “Oh no! I don’t need it anymore. There are more churches here and I might be able to wear it when we come across another one.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Oh, I knew there are historical churches here in Honfleur so I thought…” She pauses, looking at him with overflowing mirth in her eyes before tugging Olivia once again. “Nevermind! Can we go to the next destination? It’s still early.”

He knows she’s got something scandalous in her mind but in order to get out of the church’s vicinity as fast as possible, he just wears the bag again and lazily gestures to her phone. “You’re the one looking for places.”

“Eh. The town is small. We can literally just walk around and we’ll see interesting places.”

Taeyong quietly lags behind. Keeping his eyes on his sister, he watches as she wordlessly responds to whatever Jennie says. With Jennie, she looks much more relaxed. The knife thrower has half a mind to remain invisible for the rest of the night.

Is it what they call concern? Taeyong scoffs to himself. He feels particularly nothing. It’s just a choice he can easily make. To bother his sister or let her be? He can do what he wishes to do.

They arrive next at the **_Eugène Boudin_** museum. Sadly, because it’s already 7, the museum is close to the public. Jennie just insists on taking photos at the gates with the quiet lady, ordering Taeyong to be their unofficial photographer. To her chagrin, the man indeed takes photos, having them pose for a while only to snap pictures of his own face being devoid of emotions. Jennie’s foul mouth explodes with profanities before dragging Olivia with her again, speed-walking away from the only guy in their small group like he’s the plague.

He probably is.

 _Le Jardin des Personnalités_ is 14 minutes away from their last destination. Because of the festival, its usual hours has extended until 9pm. Taeyong pays for the entrance, as usual, and before he can think of finding a seat to lounge on while the girls enjoy themselves, Jennie roughly pulls him next to her and slaps his arm, _boldly,_ like she would never face death if she ever angers the knife thrower.

And that’s true. Ethan has always been lenient with her invasive and shameless behavior not because he likes her – the fucks he has are simply not enough. Besides, she’s practically begging for one of her hands, or both if she’s unlucky, to be sliced by relentlessly touching him and Taeyong does not give in to the idea of actually doing it when the person wants it. Isn’t it more thrilling when they’re not expecting it? Jennie knows for a fact what she’s doing.

He pulls out the chewed lollipop stick and throws it in a bin on the way.

10 hectares of green gardens, blooming flowers and busts of eminent personalities who were natives of the small town are found in the calming and refreshing attraction. At this time of the night, the garden is lit beautifully. Walkways leading to the several busts are flanked with fragrant flowers – some pink, some white, and Olivia wishes there are placards to tell her what species of flowers they are. She likes flowers for their softness and different meanings, just like most people.

The times she received flowers are long ago and can be counted in one hand. The times she has given flowers are countless, and the last time she did is as fresh as the plants surrounding her. From the day she recovered enough to be on her own, landed a job enough to keep herself from starving, she has bought flowers to put on the mini alter she had back in the place she was renting, until Taeyong found her. She has nothing else to offer to her parents’ souls alongside the prayers she has already memorized.

Lee Namgyu was never a significant figure in her life but he held her hand and cried for her when she was in pain. Olivia prays for his atonement.

Léonie was the permanent family member in her life, the one that favored her over her brother. Even though she was passively cruel to him, they had an unbreakable bond. Olivia hates to think of how her mother suffered in the hands of those vicious men. Some nights she stayed up hoping that Léonie survived like she did, but she knew they were disposed in different places.

Her father must have been thrown in the river, her mother must have been left carelessly in the middle of the road like the other rape victims. She was the only one that woke up in a decent place but she can never call it a blessing.

Never in her life will she call the hell she went through a blessing.

Upon noticing that the other lady is in a trance, Jennie softly pokes Olivia’s side and waves in front of her face. “Earth to Oli? Are you okay? You’re so quiet – well, you can’t talk but you look lonelier than the previous days. Do you feel unwell?”

“Exe has stopped working.” Taeyong comments offhandedly before jostling Olivia, earning him a glower from his sister. “Liven up, Taehee. I brought you here to have fun since you always look so dead it’s already getting insulting. I feel like you only act like that when I’m around.”

Olivia furiously signs. None of the two others understand. Jennie tells the knife thrower off with a look before consoling his sister.

“He’s attractive…”

Taeyong tilts his head in an awkward fashion that any normal person would think weird as he glances at the source of compliment obviously aimed at him. A pair of girls, young looking – probably in their early 20s throw any hint of shame in their faces with the way they openly stare.

One of them takes out her phone and walks up to the knife thrower who’s staring blandly at her. “You’re handsome. Are you French? No. You look mixed.”

“What do you want?”

“Oooh,” the other girl wiggles her brows at her friend before whispering, “uptight. Your type. The worst of them all but good looking.”

Jennie and Olivia raise brows at the two’s display of shamelessness, waiting how things will take turn.

The girl does something in her phone before handing it to Taeyong. “You’re really my type. Please put your number in? Oh wait.” A succeeding thought makes her withdraw the phone and bite her lip in thought, embarrassedly looking at the man who’s still staring unnervingly at her. “You don’t have a girlfriend, do you?”

He smirks, the first overt reaction he gives to the girl and promptly pockets his left hand. “No.”

Seeing the smirk on his face and taking it as a sign of mutual attraction, she happily hands Taeyong her phone and tucks a tuft of hair behind an extensively pierced ear. “My birthday is next week. It would be really nice if we spend it together?” She slightly bounces on her heels as she checks her new contact, unaware that Taeyong input a totally random number. Bless whoever owns it. “Listen, you might get this a lot but you’re really hot. Are you a model?”

The smirk remains on his face as combs through his mussed, long hair, the strands falling over his natural blue eyes that make him a whole lot hotter to her. “No.”

“So what do you do?”

“Drugs.”

Jennie guffaws on the side, her mouth open unattractively wide to let out the most un-ladylike laugh. If she gave a fuck at the moment, she would be embarrassed.

Taeyong nods at the horrified girls before taking out his left hand and purposely using it to scratch at his own pierced ear. There’s no way the girls won’t notice the wedding ring. “Drugs and my husband.”

Realizing they both got trolled, they leave him alone with a twin frown and additional ‘fuck you’.

“That was great!” Shoulders still shaking with slowly dying giggles, Jennie shoots him thumbs up before waving a manicured middle finger back at the girls. “This is why I can’t hate you so much. You’re hot and gay and funny.”

With the previously dampened atmosphere effortlessly salvaged, they continue to amble around the garden until they’ve already seen the whole of it.

“I’m hungry. Aren’t there stalls in the festival?”

“If you like seafood.” Taeyong checks his watch and cocks his head. “Come on. There will be concerts and processions there. If that’s your thing.”

Since there are no public rides available this time due to the crowded road, by foot is the only way to get to the _Les Vieux Bassin._ By the time they arrive to the port where a lot of stalls are currently lined up selling various seafood cuisines, even Taeyong is undeniably hungry and ready to risk everything for a Honfleur delicacy.

Shrimps are the main dish in the festival but all kinds of seafood available are also sold. Some stalls perform cooking tricks in front of the tourists while the others allow the customers to have freedom to create recipes suited to their tastes.

Time is nothing but a dream from thereon. They eat to their heart’s content; Taeyong doesn’t even mind getting squashed as strangers occupy the vacant seats next to him. Olivia seems to be enjoying herself for real now, although she’s still having some difficulty eating everything Jennie puts in her plate. She eats slow, pokes the food inside her mouth and frequently drinks to easily swallow it.

After dining, they proceed to watch the ancient ship procession. Several models of ancient ships row over the channel of water leading to the mouth of Seine. While the procession happens, a group of dancers commence a street show on the right, and from a distance, musicians are engrossed in their own concert.

An hour before midnight, Jennie complains about her feet hurting from standing for too long. Taeyong waves her away after dumping the backpack in her arms.

“Why are you still here?” He looks at Olivia who remains next to him with her head slightly bowed, avoiding his eyes.

She purses her lips and points ahead.

“You wanna take a walk?”

Unexpectedly, she nods.

Taeyong shrugs and begins leading their aimless trip to wherever the walkway leads them.

Late night wind in Honfleur is colder with the river’s assistance. The later it gets, the merrier locals and tourists become. As they continue their silent amble over cobblestone roads, the music and chatter subside with how far they go.

Olivia pulls her jacket closer and zips it up to her neck. She then looks up to see a liquor shop ahead, hesitantly tapping her brother’s shoulder to call his attention before pointing at the store. Taeyong wonders how she can tell he’s into alcohol as they enter.

Welcoming them is an array of Calvados and Pommeau. Normandy is home to whisky and beer as well which are all found in the quaint shop they are currently in. Taeyong purchases a bottle of Calvados. He wants to try the apple brandy with Jaehyun.

“Do you drink?” The knife thrower asks as they exit the shop. Olivia nods, but signs that she has a fairly low tolerance.

“Do you smoke?”

Her face scrunches.

Taeyong snorts. “I used to inhale one pack of it a day. Started little until I couldn’t go through 24 hours anymore without nicotine. It was like drugs to me. Had ticks and no sleep because I abused it so much that I didn’t feel myself anymore. Like I was out of my body most of the time. I don’t know if it happens to everyone else but too much makes all things possible.”

“I only stopped because of Jaehyun. He wanted me to detox and I had a terrible withdrawal. After that I got into a mental facility.”

Olivia looks up at him, watches his side profile.

“Don’t look surprised. I’m not totally insane. There’s a defect with my brain that keeps me from having intense feelings. Sometimes it happens, but they die down pretty fast. I might get mad right now and a second later I’m not – I will feel nothing. Based on the diagnosis, I cannot differentiate right from wrong. It’s true, but I also believe morals do not exist. See, when I ran away, I slept in public libraries after reading lots of books. That’s how I know humans are stupid.”

Taeyong glances at her. She doesn’t look away in fear, a first time since they met again.

“Conscience is something I wasn’t born with so I never apologized for ruining your birthday. But during the times I couldn’t go out like other kids did, I wondered if I could also be normal, do normal. I knew from the beginning that I don’t care if I’m wrong, if I hurt others, if I’m the spawn of Satan. Watching everyone though, I wanted to learn how to be normal just to know what would happen. Would I be treated differently? Would I be allowed to have friends? Would those neighborhood mothers stop gossiping?”

“I think that’s why I learned to resent even though I barely felt it. Violence is the only way I could talk. That’s why I hated our mother. Because she didn’t teach me how to be like you. That’s fine, though. Because if my symptoms were stopped earlier on, I would be weak. I don’t want to be weak.”

He stops walking and turns to her, blank eyes boring into her soul. “A lot of things happened in the 11 years we were apart. If you knew me before, you don’t me now. The same goes to me. But I will always want to protect you because I can do it, and I know how cruel people’s intentions can be. Don’t fear me anymore, Taehee. I’m not gonna do more than stab your finger.”

Through the dark, he sees how she gulps in uncertainty before looking down. Taeyong momentarily watches some people pass by.

“I guess we will never understand each other.”

The tender yet bitter atmosphere is broken as Olivia lets out a shriek. Soon she begins trembling, her fingers digging down her arms as she clutches tight and frightening looks at someone. Taeyong follows her line of sight and sees a man turn to smirk at her.

She has been groped.

Without thinking twice, fueled purely by impulse and the urge to _punish,_ he shoves the paper bag to her. He doesn’t care if she drops it.

Conscience is that one piece God forgot to install in him as a person. So even if it doesn’t personally offend him, to see his sister flinch in disgust, scared to the bones, it’s enough to justify the rain of punches he’s giving to the molester.

Taeyong doesn’t speak. He doesn’t say anything. He’s slowly breaking the man’s face while his own stays barren of reaction.

Even as cops are called and he’s ripped away from the nearly unconscious man on the ground, the knife thrower gives nothing away. His bloodied hand gets cuffed, and the beaten stranger gets hauled to his feet as they are both taken to the police station. Olivia follows them, signing desperately to explain the situation.

The street celebration is momentarily disturbed but soon returns it to its joyous spirits when the altercation is put to a halt.

Olivia sits next to her brother and takes Taeyong’s phone out of his pocket, typing. She then shows it to one of the officers but they refuse to let him go, wanting to record the incident. The stranger, who is a foreign tourist, tells his side of the story, his voice coming out slurred and nasal due to his broken nose.

Much to her relief, the guy doesn’t lie. He admits to his mistake but wants compensation for being beaten up.

Despite the situation being clarified, they still insist Taeyong to be locked up for days for physical violence. Olivia panics, scrolls through her brother’s phone to ask for help.

“Don’t call my husband.”

She frowns, taking a quick glance at everyone in the room before calling Jennie and pressing the phone to Taeyong’s ear.

It takes a few rings before Jennie picks up, groggy from sleep.

_“Boss?”_

“I’m at the police station.”

“….”

“Jennie Kim.”

_“Why the hell are you there?! Did you get–”_

“I punched someone. They want to lock me up for at least two days. Come here and do something.”

_“Uh, I’ll see what I can do. God, Taeyong. Getting jailed at the ass crack of dawn?”_

“It’s literally about 12.”

_“I don’t care! I said what I said.”_

The call ends and Olivia gestures for the police officers to wait as they called for help. They ask if it is a lawyer they are waiting for, but Olivia just sighs, missing the ghost of a smirk playing on Taeyong’s lips.

Ten minutes pass by, fifteen, twenty. Taeyong is already glaring daggers at everyone in the station. What the fuck is taking Jennie so lo–

The glass doors of the police station open wide as Jennie comes in…

…dressed as a nun.

“What are you –“

Jennie slowly faces him, her movements delicate to go by with her disguise. She pins the kingpin a look, an agreement that only the two of them understand before she faces the officers with a smile.

“Good evening, officers.”

“Sister! Good evening! What brought you here? Are you reporting something?”

She dismisses their inquiry with a gentle laughter before gesturing to Taeyong, sighing as she does so. “I know him. He called me, helpless and in dire need of the holy spirit’s aid.”

Taeyong’s eyes bulge. Olivia blinks, furtively slapping her brother’s thigh. Impressively, she has picked up on Jennie’s motives.

The fraud nun continues her act. “We cannot afford a lawyer as we are humble citizens earning just enough for our daily expense. So I am hoping that through God, we can settle this misunderstanding.”

“What misunderstanding? The motherfucker disrespe–”

Jennie reaches for the mask tucked to his chin and pulls it up, then tapping his mouth over the cloth.

“Son, you are sick. Don’t worsen your pneumonia.”

One of the officers asks. “Pneumonia?”

“Yes, he was diagnosed with Pneumonia and it doesn’t look like it but he’s going to die. The Lord is asking him to return the life he borrowed.”

Taeyong lets out two pathetic coughs. “I’m sick. Dying. Don’t jail me.”

“See, officers? Would you be so kind to let this one slide? He might not wake up tomorrow, and the last thing we would want him to leave in this world is a criminal record.” Jennie sniffles, and Taeyong almost applauds when a tear rolls down her face. He remains stiff in his seat, letting out painfully fake coughs every now and then.

The officers discuss the situation then, moved by the nun’s pleas. At the end, they agreed to just let it go and made Taeyong promise that he will provide even a little amount to help with the other guy’s medication.

“Oh, hallelujah. This must be a divine intervention!” Jennie makes a show of praying, murmuring with her hand raises to the sky. Or roof of the police station.

The cuff around his wrists are then unlocked and they are escorted by the officers outside. Once out of the authorities’ earshot, Taeyong pulls the mask down, takes out his wallet and slaps a wad of cash on the stranger’s hand.

“Show your face to me and I will–”

“Taeyong! God wishes not to hear you speak ill of your brothers and sisters. Everything is alright now. Let us bury the hatchet and lift our apologies to the Holy Spirit. I’m certain you are already forgiven as we speak, since you have my blessing.” Jennie sighs and turns to the man. “May the Grace of our Lord be with you. Refrain from succumbing to temptations. In the Bible, Jesus said to pluck your eyes if you desire flesh that you cannot have.”

The man crumples the bills in his hands and finally leaves them alone, not daring to spare them a glance.

“Why are you fucking dressed like that?” Taeyong throws Jennie a look that he hopes conveys how ridiculous she is.

“Now is that how you should talk to the Bride of Christ?” Jennie scoffs, removing the veil and untying her hair. “I thought it would work. I brought this in panic when you told me to come to Paris and when you said you’d bring us to Honfleur, I was hoping to get laid and you know, play my best-loved role.” She wiggles her brows at the filthy implication of her bedroom activities.

A passerby greets her and Jennie quickly puts on an act. “Oh God bless you!”

The knife thrower winces. “Sacrilegious. You’re still a whore under all that costume.”

“Silencio!” Jennie glares at him as they begin their walk back to the hotel. “You’re so ungrateful, Ethan. I had this skit prepared and you played your role quite well. Just a little brush up will do.” She playfully dusts off his shoulder.

A little behind them, Olivia reverts to being bashful as she crosses her arms over her chest as a way to keep the protective fences around her.

“I thought you would offer them a night of passion in exchange of releasing me. Imagine my disappointment when you took the religious path. How in the world do you even know so much about the Holy Spirit you were blabbering there?”

“Huh. Aren’t we all Christians once in our lives?” Her laughter rings in the still joyous night. “Plus the officers look like they got yeast infection. No way would I get it on with them.” Finally taking off the garb, she turns to him with a puzzled expression. “Why did you even need me? You could’ve taken them down alone.” She reaches for Taeyong’s hand which is quickly torn out of her hold by its owner. “That’s gonna bruise real bad.”

“What do you think? They have guns and I literally have nothing with me. That basically screams suicide. And I’m not dying looking like this.” Taeyong tosses the mask to the side, uncaring that he’s littering.

“Yeah,” Jennie looks grossed out. “Like a cheap hoodlum. Why didn’t you call Jaehyun?”

“Use your head. Gambetta is two hours away and you were just there, snoring.”

“Aw, I didn’t expect there would be a day you’d willingly call me.”

“I didn’t. Olivia was the one who called you.”

“Eh? Olivia?” Jennie exclaims in excitement, looking at the lady behind them. But Taehee has her head down and the dimness of the street curtains her expression.

Taeyong can sense the negative aura coming off of her, though.

And it only worsens when they arrive at the hotel, finally grating on Taeyong’s nerves.

Olivia slams the door close, preventing Taeyong from entering hers and Jennie’s room. But the knife thrower refuses to accept the treatment and enters anyway, watching his sister stomp to her bed and remove her jacket, roughly shoving it to her bag.

“Stop what you’re doing.”

Jennie looks between the siblings, shutting her mouth so as not to aggravate them further.

Like she doesn’t hear anything, Olivia continues to stomp around the room as she prepares to get ready to wash up.

“Lee Taehee, you’re being too loud.”

A picture frame falls to the carpeted floor when his sister accidentally knocks it off as she carelessly puts his phone on top of the nightstand. He didn’t even notice she’s been holding it all along.

She then walks past him wanting to go to the bathroom but Taeyong ultimately stops her by grabbing her arm tightly, causing her to wince. “I said stop fucking stomping around, Olivia! Don’t you think you’re being rude to me? What?” He shakes jostles her as she tries to pry her arm out of his hold. “You’re pissed at me for being violent? For literally beating up a potential rapist? _Your_ potential rapist? I haven’t heard a fucking thank you yet!”

His voice booms in the room, loud enough for the next room to hear. Jennie clenches her fists and tries to stop him, but gets told to shut the fuck up.

Her chest constricts at it. “You’re hurting her…”

The knife thrower sends her a deathly stare. “I once almost crushed your windpipe the first time you touched me, why didn’t you say the same thing? Don’t squeeze yourself in places you don’t belong.”

The statement pierces her chest and leaves a gaping hole in her ego. Taeyong turns towards his sister again and chuckles at the way she’s squirming in fear. “I don’t know why you’re acting like I’m your father’s killer. You look at me like I’m reliving your nightmares. How _rude_ of you, Olivia. Is it because I didn’t come to your rescue?”

He’s at his wit’s end. Taeyong was cool with not immediately getting the answers out of her, content with her being evasive since the start but he won’t settle with the attitude she’s giving him right now. What wrong did he even do? He gave that guy what he deserved, defended her, and she’s still mad at him? For what? For fighting? For leaving not even a bloody mess on the man’s face?

For reminding her of how he was too late in saving her?

The painful grip he has on his sister loosens and he drops her arm like it was the most disgusting he has ever laid his hands on.

Taeyong takes a single step back to give her a once over and stuns her to the core that she staggers in utter shock and disbelief with just six words.

“Léonie is alive. She’s in Bordeaux.”

For a moment, Olivia forgets how to breathe. Léonie is alive. Her mother… she didn’t die. She got out of that hellhole.

She _is_ alive.

And Ethan just told her.

She screams at him but with her mouth close, eyes accusatory. Why did he only say it now? Did he enjoy watching her be miserable? Shouldn’t telling her that their mother is alive and possibly well the first thing he should’ve done than force her into quitting her job, forcing her into leaving her place, forcing her into accepting the fact that he’s back _just like that_?

Olivia wants to cry, slap him, and thank him for giving back her hope in life all at once.

“Now you’re fucking reacting. Why didn’t you make the same hopeful face when we met?” Incensed once again, and it’s one of those rare times he’s feeling more than he’s supposed to and it won’t abate, just keeps _pulsing and pulsing_ to the point of explosion, he drops the questions that bugs his whole being.

“How are _you_ alive? I know Léonie is alive because I saved her from Dragonaire. But why are _you_ alive? Who helped you, huh? Why don’t you wanna tell me, Taehee? You’re supposed to be dead! I was going to give up on you but you showed up and you expect me not to be curious?! I’m having a hard time right now and what you can tell me might help but you don’t wanna fucking cooperate!”

“Ethan!” Jennie cannot take it anymore and gets in between them, covering the poor lady. “You’re scaring her, can’t you see?!”

As though a button is suddenly turned off in him, the knife thrower looks at her calmly yet forbiddingly. “I don’t know fear, Jennie. Give her back to me.” He waits for Jennie to move aside but when the latter remains where she is, he gets out of the room.

The two girls think it’s over, only for them to get proven wrong when Taeyong returns with a knife in his hand, still looking perfectly calm.

Jennie gulps. “Put the knife away. Please.”

“Or what, Jennie?”

Lips firmly pressed, like she _hates_ to do what’s on her mind, Jennie pulls out the needles from her hairpins.

Sardonic laughter gradually bubbles from the knife thrower until he’s loudly cracking up the hilarity of it all. “How fearso–”

Until Jennie points the needle at Olivia’s neck, right above her pulse.

It looks like the tables have turned as Taeyong sizzles in fury.

“I’ll give her back if you calm down.”

Taeyong’s eyes shift between the two women, weighing his options. He could kill Jennie and deal with a hysterical sister or he could spare them both and calmly confront Olivia – as calmly as he can.

He drops the knife.

Jennie steps aside yet close enough to cover Olivia should her boss flip the tables back to his side.

“Lee Taehee. We hadn’t seen each other for over a decade. I told you earlier – you don’t know me anymore. You could talk back to me then but a fuckton of things have changed. I’m not gonna ask you again and I’m not letting you shut me out.”

She keeps her mouth shut, only letting out muffled sobs.

“Puorquoi t’es en vie?!” ( _“Why are you alive?!”_ )

He doesn’t know what he was expecting her to do but certainly not for her to open her mouth and _talk_ , as much as a handicapped could.

Her words were gibberish, the sounds distorted. She cries even harder when she saw the horror on Jennie’s face, causing her to pathetically drop to the floor, hugging her knees.

“What.” Taeyong drops in front of her and cups your jaw, pinching it to open her mouth. “Don’t make me split it up with a knife, Olivia.”

She grips his arms for support when her spirit seems to have escaped her body, and Olivia soon calms enough for her to courageously open her mouth.

Taeyong stares. He stares at her snipped tongue until he absorbs the sight before gathering her hands and taking in how broken her fingers are.

“They did these to you, didn’t they?” Two pairs of blue eyes meet – one broken, one ominous. “Dragonaire.”

She slowly withdraws her hands and looks down.

The knife thrower stands up and walks over to the windows to stare at the bright lights of Honfleur. Jennie follows him.

“She’s suffering from trauma.”

Taeyong looks at their clear reflection on the window. “I can see that.”

Meanwhile in Paris, something stuns Jaehyun beyond belief as well, but for a whole different reason.

As soon as they landed, Doyoung, Johnny and Yuta go straight to the hideout, delivering the worst news Jaehyun has ever gotten in his life.

“Are you sure of this?” He shakily asks the three. Somehow, after everything Invictus has been through, he can’t bring himself to believe it.

Doyoung averts his gaze. “What reason would they have to lie? It would be an extreme coincidence if they came up with a flurry of lies that somehow fit perfectly. Please call Taeyong. We need to plan ahead so we can save what’s left of Invictus’ reputation.”

“Where is he, though? Can we take a nap while waiting?” Yuta yawns before getting hit upside the head by Johnny. “Stop hitting me!”

“Keep your voice down. There are kids sleeping.”

Jaehyun ignores them to finally contact his husband, his hand slightly quivering from the surge of anger.

“She needs to attend therapies for this, Ethan. If she doesn’t, you’re gonna keep fighting.”

“Do you think I can afford to squeeze that in the things happening right now? That can wait. It’s highly likely she’s been dealing with it for nearly four years. What’s at least two more weeks?”

That is if the ordeal ends in two weeks.

His phone buzzes loudly over the nightstand. Jennie fetches it for him and Taeyong remains staring at his reflection as he picks up the call.

“Talk.”

 _“Taeyong you need to go back. You gotta know what the squad has to say and this can’t wait, I swear.”_ Jaehyun’s agitation is palpable.

“Oh great. I also have something to tell you all about Fort.”

_“What is it? Is that what you’ve been doing all this time?”_

“Kind of. I went to the headquarters yesterday and saw something _exciting.”_

_“You actually got in? I thought–”_

“Of course!” Taeyong chuckles before biting on his nail. “What’s the use of me literally being a Garnet member if I couldn’t get in?”

Whatever Jaehyun says on the line falls on deaf ears as Taeyong focus on his reflection on the window, as a knife glinting under the harsh light raises, ready to pierce through him.

The phone drops to the fall as he makes a swift turn and strikes Olivia’s arm, knocking the knife off her hand. Jennie bites back a curse for failing to take notice and picks up the weapon to put it far from the siblings’ reach.

Taeyong shoves his sister to the wall, eyes murderous. “You’re going to do what, hm? Kill me?” He laughs at her face, mocking her failed attempt to get rid of him. “You’re gonna fucking kill me?! Why?! Is this how you show your gratitude?! Fucking _bitch._ I’ll show you how to kill, I swear to motherfucking–”

She scratches down his face, hoping to inflict a little bit of pain for her brother to let her go which ends up in vain as the knife thrower only laughs harder despite the sting.

“You’re crazy. If I only knew this is what you’d do to me, I shouldn’t have searched for you.”

“Ga..nght…”

“What is it, huh? You’re talking?”

“Ga….et….”

She repeats the crooked word for a few times until Taeyong lets her go with an inquisitive gaze.

“ _Garnet?_ ”

Olivia nods, trembling as she looks back at him through a blur of tears. She then points to her mouth and shows him her hands before saying the mafia group’s name as clear as she can with a dysfunctional tongue.

And as though the universe crumbled and tons of its debris crush him to dust, Taeyong realizes what she wants to say.

Dragonaire was not the one that ripped articulation from the woman in front of him. Dragonaire was not the one that replaced her dainty hands with deformed digits.

Léonie was the only one he saw back there because Lee Namgyu’s body was already disposed, and Olivia was in Garnet’s hands.

Taeyong blanches.

“ _Taeyong? Taeyong! What’s happening?!_ ”

Oh, right. Jaehyun’s still on. He forces himself to pick up the phone, not taking his attention off of his sister.

_“Taeyong, are you still there? Is that…is that a woman?”_

“Heh. She sounded so horrible; how could you tell it’s a woman? I think you found a hidden talent.”

_“Why are you with a woman?! Are you seeing her behind my back?!”_

Taeyong picks his ear due to the other’s grating scream. “The size of your dick does not permit you to act this way. Humble yourself.”

Before Jaehyun sputters undesirable conclusions, Taeyong continues. “But lo and behold, it is indeed a woman. I found my goddamn sister, Jaehyun. I’ll come back. Can’t wait for you to meet the delusion you’ve been calling.”

It’s around 3AM when Taeyong parks the car in the driveway. The living room is lit and he can hear hushed voices discussing indistinctly when the three of them enter.

Yuta, Jaehyun, Johnny and Doyoung simultaneously turn to the newcomers. At the sight of Taeyong’s supposedly dead sister in flesh, Yuta clears his throat. “That’s your sister?”

“Stay with her in one of the rooms.” Taeyong instructs Jennie and responds to Yuta when the door to their chosen bedroom closes. “Why?”

“She’s pretty.”

“Fuck off, Nakamoto. That one’s off-limits.”

“What.” Doyoung moves from his place to take a look at where the two ladies disappeared. “Isn’t she dead?”

“What a dumb question coming from you, Kim Doyoung. Honestly upsetting. I’d get it if the midget nurse was the one who asked.”

Johnny calls him out and that’s when the knife thrower notices they’re incomplete.

“Where are the two?”

“They stayed to look after the headquarters and supervise in the transactions.”

Jaehyun speaks. “So I presume you’ve been with her during the day you kept going out.”

“Yeah.” Taeyong plops on the couch with his feet up the center table. “I knew it was her I saw at Disneyland. Didn’t tell you right away that I’ve found her because one, I wanted to spend time with her before she gets involved in all this shit and two, you’d be demanding explanations right away with your hysterical ass. How would I give you answers? She won’t tell me. And I was expecting the investigation with Dragonaire would do it for me.”

He grins up at Jaehyun particularly. “Am I still delusional?”

The younger looks apologetic, at least. They would probably uncover some secrets soon if he believed Taeyong.

But yesterday is history and today is what they have to focus on.

“There’s really no use in beating yourselves over questions of her existence without knowing what happened with Dragonaire first, which is this squad’s work. And now,” The second kingpin’s attention darts over the three. “I believe we can finally sew the seams together? I still gotta ask Fort the exact reason why he had my sister, though.”

Reminded by the forthcoming catastrophe, Jaehyun stiffens. “Why Fort? But that picture Dragonaire gave us had her and Namgyu in it.”

“She heard our conversation on the phone and wanted to kill me – can you believe that, because I can’t – because I said I’m a Garnet member. Apparently, they were the ones that cut her tongue and battered her hands.”

The eagerness to stab a hundred holes on Fort’s body hits him once again and it shows on the way his eyes darken. “She was taken away after Dragonaire carved her back. Garnet mutilated and disfigured her, patched her up and let her go. Even though I wanted to ask more, she literally refused to recall traumatic events. But enough of her…”

He gets up and cocks his head at Jaehyun. “What information did you get?”

“You’re not gonna believe this.”

Taeyong rids of the sore on his neck as he twists his head quick, the sound of bone cracking echoes in the dead of night. “Try me.”

Doyoung promptly takes over in the explanation, feeling like it’s his responsibility to do so being the one to directly ask Park Minkyung and Park Inseok. “Dragonaire didn’t want Red Phoenix’s proposals.”

That gets him an arched brow.

“Yes, they wanted to be with Garnet but they had nothing to offer. So Garnet told them to take what was Red Phoenix’s and if they could do it, then Garnet would agree to an association.”

“Did Moon Taeil know about this?”

Doyoung shakes his head. “No. Park Minkyung, our main source for the information, who is Kim Taejun’s wife, said that Dragonaire knew it would be difficult to hack through Red Phoenix so they conspired with Taeil and promised him a reward they had no plans to fulfill. When I penetrated their system, I could only retrieve recent mails as searching deeper would only cause an interruption and we would be detected.” He takes a quick pause as regrets crosses over his features.

Johnny sympathetically pats his back in encouragement.

“Their vague mails only repeatedly asked for Garnet to reach back to them, were left unread. I’d bet the already sent the proposals passed by Taeil earlier on and Garnet either decrypted or coded to download the files without opening the emails. It’s something that can be done by anyone, but we didn’t consider such possibility because we trusted them so much.” When Doyoung says it, he almost sounds pained. “They shared a deeper connection to Red Phoenix. It simply wouldn’t make sense to even think of doubting them, would it?”

Taeyong’s tongue pokes against the inside of his cheek as he weighs the information. “When the war between Red Phoenix and Dragonaire was started, pretty sure the latter asked Garnet for help.”

“Yes. The reason Red Phoenix was easily ambushed was because Garnet donated a number of their men to Dragonaire. Most likely, some of those you and Jaehyun killed were given by Fort.” Johnny says.

Their attention goes back to Doyoung once again as he follows Johnny’s explanation. “Garnet could easily take down Red Phoenix on their own but involving a third party was killing two birds with one stone – kill an annoying weakling which was Dragonaire, and obliterate their biggest partner which was Red Phoenix, all the while pretending to be innocent. Because if Fort didn’t use a third party and directly stole the proposals, imagine what would happen when Lee Namgyu watched him close the deal with Casanov. Their innocence had to be maintained.”

At the mention of Casanov, Taeyong comes up with a question to the squad. “Did it cross your mind why it took Fort such a short period of time to close the deal with Casanov using those proposals if Moon Taeil only went there around the time we were idle for two weeks?”

“…That was odd, I admit.” Jaehyun says. “Closing such a huge deal would take much longer than that.”

Taeyong chuckles. “Because they already had the files long before Moon Taeil himself gave it to Fort. It agrees with the prospect that Fort had it decrypted the second it was sent. That goddamn assistant probably didn’t think Dragonaire was just using him.”

For the first time since the discussion began, Yuta finally speaks up. They actually forgot he was there, and Johnny suppresses laughter at the side. “Well, Dragonaire didn’t realize they were being used too. Them and Moon Taeil never knew the proposals were already in Fort’s hands.” The Japanese finishes with a smug face as though it was the most salient detail in the investigation, only to punch Johnny in the arm as the latter gives up on stifling his laugh. “Assholes!”

Ignoring the two, Taeyong begins chewing on his nail again while talking. “Betting a finger on it that locating my mother and sister was Garnet’s doing. But Kim Taejun said they forced it out of Lee Namgyu. Whichever could be right or wrong because if he so much as mentioned Fort’s involvement, he wouldn’t get that affiliation.”

“Oi, you two. Knock it off.” Jaehyun calls out the still squabbling friends and sighs. “Didn’t you talk to Fort and tell him about Moon Taeil? How did he react?”

“Fucking strange.” Taeyong says, eyes widening a fraction at the memory. “I shouldn’t have ignored it. He was too calm. Told me it couldn’t be helped if Red Phoenix didn’t want them anymore. He said it was what Taeil reported to him. Thinking of it now, it couldn’t have been that easy given the fact our fathers were almost brothers. Or maybe that was a lie too.”

He muses as he plays with a strand of hair looking as though it’s very interesting. “Anyway. He’s a huge dipshit. If he was innocent, he wouldn’t let Red Phoenix go just like that. But he just sat there and took it all with a blink because he got what he wanted. Tsk. He really made me think it was as a piece of cake because it wasn’t that deep. I feel stupid.” Taeyong pouts and Jaehyun almost finds it cute if not for the fact that he knows of his husband’s antics.

“Why did he even keep Taeil?”

“I don’t know.” Doyoung answers Yuta. “Ask him that when we talk to him face to face.”

“And also why he took Taeyong as a member when he was the one that ruined Red Phoenix.”

Jaehyun remembers that day quite well. It was a revelation that surprised him but not Taeyong who only thought of how to save Sicheng from Cygnus and Venandi. “He said it was an agreement between their fathers. That Taeyong was to be a member of Garnet as protection.”

“Bullshit.” Taeyong cusses out loud. “You shouldn’t believe that after everything. He has his ulterior motives. Why he gave the project back to Invictus and allowed it to be partners with Garnet when it’s literally returning what they stole and dismissing their own scheme. Why he said I’ve always been a Garnet member. Think of those. Forget all the _good_ he did, that rotten son of a bitch.”

“During the call, you told me that you went to Garnet. We haven’t known Fort’s true colors that time and you could’ve died there.”

“Ah, yes. Remember that night I broke out of the practice room? Of course, you’d remember that; you had the best night of your life, you’re welcome. You were talking with Fort, right? Sungjong said the conniving bastard went to the casino and asked Chanyeol about Andre Caron. The dumbass was too drunk to mention Andre Caron’s already dead. I don’t know what he said but it sure made Fort think the guy was still there. His mistake, though – and his mistake for thinking we wouldn’t do something about it.”

Taeyong scoffs and plops on the couch again, tightening the hood of his jacket around his face. “I went there to confirm it and found the tapestry in a secret room, thanks to Kim Jaejoong. And the stolen items from Invictus are there.”

Doyoung nods. “It would still work, I guess. I mean Fort using the Corsican mafia even if he knew we would find out that they aren’t the ones targeting you. You confronted the Corsican leader about what Unione Corse did. Your other clue was the tapestry. Both of you would still suspect Dragonaire and meet a dead end because we didn’t know that we would still find someone connected to that dead group to tell us the truth and lead us to Fort’s involvement right from the start. If there were no more of them like we all thought, then we would never know it was Garnet all along. He’s safe, regardless.”

“So the letter…” Jaehyun says as he pieces a fact to another.

“Fort did it. Garnet was a member of the Corsican mafia and definitely knew the leader’s sign and its logo.” Taeyong mumbles monotonously as though the last bit of energy in him has finally been used up.

“He met with Kim Taejun personally as well, according to his wife.” Doyoung says. “That’s how he saw the tattoo.”

“Such an admirable ability, huh? If I had a photographic memory, I’d consider being a spy as a second career.”

“Didn’t he think that the Corsican might suspect somebody else about the letter?”

“They wouldn’t suspect Garnet. They ended relations without bad blood.” Taeyong’s answer probes another question coming from Johnny.

“If the initial raid pushed through and succeeded, wouldn’t the Corsican leader get curious?”

“We were briefed about how things work in the Corsican mafia.” Taeyong tugs harder on the hoodie’s drawstrings in boredom while recounting the discussion with Flavio Ricci and Pierre Dalle. “If a group receives an order through a letter, as long as it has the leader’s sign and seal, they wouldn’t need any more confirmation and just get down to business. Like the general rule in mafia, your rival is not mine even if we’re friends. So if the Unione Corse exposed us, the Corsican leader wouldn’t meddle in it as they think it’s the former dealing with their own shit or a plain raid that none of them has motives concerning the mafia. In short, there is no verification. You do what you are told, no questions. You do your own shit, no one’s gonna be nosy.”

“And Garnet knowing the process took advantage of it.” Johnny says more to himself in realization, sighing at the predicament they’re in.

“Exactly!” The knife thrower exclaims, eyes wide yet empty as he stares at the space forward. “Anyway, Kim Doyoung, search for any charities Jung Yunho attended and save a clear photo of him. Also, make an ID for Elliot De la Croix.”

The Invictus member saves the tasks on his notepad. “What are we formulating?”

The blue-eyed man slowly turns towards him, and when he speaks, the tone he uses attracts their full attention, spurring their dedication to the yet to be contrived ploy. “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going. We have to talk to Fort soon then you can give his photo to Unione Corse. Hack through Garnet’s system and terminate it. In short, erase their existence. That ID will serve as one of his many identities as a syndicate. But only do that when we talk to him because we still have one more thing to do.”

Jaehyun asks, “What is it?”

“Gotta make sense of me being in Garnet. That was a huge risk to his group. The agreement could be true. There might be a document or any evidence his father left in the headquarters.” Taeyong hops of his seat and takes the hoodie off – the blood of the guy he beat in Honfleur flicked right to it and dried. “So we’re going there _right now._ ”

“WHAT!” Yuta exaggeratedly reacts. “Nooo, I’m sleepy!” He looks absolutely devastated it’s almost hilarious.

Doyoung’s eyes roll so hard that Jaehyun fears it might transport him into another dimension – if only it was possible. “Yuta, the sun is already high up in Korea. Your body clock won’t change that fast. You slept throughout the 12-hour flight as well so if you’re still sleepy, you might wanna grab yourself a doctor’s appointment ‘cause that’s abnormal. All you do is sleep.”

The accusation makes the Japanese give him a stink eye. Jaehyun turns to Taeyong just as the three engrosses in a quiet banter.

“Will it be alright to leave Jennie with the twins and your sister?” He glances at the hallway and looks at his husband once again with an underlying emotion that the latter fails to decipher. “You haven’t checked up on the kids yet.”

Taeyong stares at him for several seconds with an expression as dead as the enemies he already mentally killed. “She did it before.” He pertains to Jennie. “She’s the one watching Olivia when I’m here. Get dressed. Fort might return anytime.” Deliberately avoiding checking the gremlins, Taeyong grabs his hoodie and quickly chucks it in the laundry area.

“Wait. Can we like, take a shower first?” Yuta winces. “I suppose we’re gonna take some time there and I care for my hygiene.”

The first kingpin blinks a few times in disbelief. “I remember it being the last of your concern.”

“Piss off, Jaehyun.”

Taeyong returns with a change of clothes, now wearing a black blazer over his plain red shirt. “Ten fucking minutes. More than that, you will be left.”

Everyone scrambles to get to the shower, squabbling like ten-year-olds.

Jaehyun notices the older wringing his wrist before seeing the purpling bruises on both of his hands. “What happened?”

“Broke someone’s face.” The second kingpin nonchalantly answers like beating up a person is as trivial as breaking a mere object. “Cops saw and dragged me to the station.” Catching the younger overreacting before it even happens, he presses a finger against Jaehyun’s lips. “No, they didn’t ask for my name. No records. Jennie came up with lies that basically sums up to me dying from Pneumonia so they let me go.”

The sharpshooter is, suffice to say, nonplussed.

“Well, which cause of death would you prefer? I sure am fine with anything. Death is death no matter the cause.”

“You’ve been hurting yourself a lot.” Jaehyun manages to compose himself, mindlessly fiddling while staring at Taeyong’s hands. “From the fight club, during the trip, then this. Pain is like your intangible twin.”

“It’s what keeps me going.”

_And you, and Olivia, and the others I’m not yet ready to admit because I’m not sure if I have the right to include them._

“Get ready.” Taeyong goes straight to the vault room where they keep the guns, knives and explosives and picks several that Johnny can bring, guns that the two sharpshooters will most likely use before making sure he’s wrapped with the knives designed to _kill_.

Oh how he missed feeling the familiar roughness of the knives’ strap on his skin hugging him back for a long awaited reunion. Maybe pain and candies and Jaehyun aren’t his most favorite in the world but the enticing thrill of annihilation.

It has been going on for far too long. Whether Fort is ready or not, they will end it once and for all.

“Let us in.”

The guards exchange a look before one of them impatiently huffs, standing his ground.

“Sir Ethan. We were strictly told _not_ to open the gates to anyone. Not even you.”

Didn’t Fort once say he’s willing to help someone in need if it’s a Garnet member? Ironically, he’s hell-bent on breaking that statement.

“You know me, don’t you?” Taeyong pins a dark look at the two men, wordlessly saying how easy it would be to break in after breaking their bones for the hell of it. “You were the one that asked Fort back then if he knew an Ethan Lee and then he let me in.”

“But sir–”

“Don’t make me actually act upon the threat you got _back then_. Let us in, before I blow your brains off. Believe me when I say I can tear through your throats with bear hands right this second.”

A short staredown happens before the security yields and reluctantly opens the gates for the five Invictus men.

Taeyong pats the guard’s cheek tauntingly. “Tell Fort I insisted to come. I’m sure he’s gonna scamper to return.”

“Are you sure about that?” Jaehyun whispers as soon as they successfully get inside the building. As it is currently very early in the morning, the sun has yet to rise at barely five, the only ones in the vicinity of Garnet are the security team.

“Fort will take at least 7 to 8 hours to come back if he leaves New York right now.”

“How exactly are we gonna look for that evidence?” Johnny asks.

Lights open one by one the further they walk.

“Just search every nook and cranny of this building.” The knife thrower purposely glances at one of the CCTVs. “Don’t worry about a fight arising. Fort will prefer to deal with us personally than be away while Garnet is in shambles.”

At that, Johnny and Yuta claim a floor to search before the three get into an elevator to go to main office as Taeyong sends a quick text to Jaejoong telling the doctor to head to Garnet. He might be of help.

Nothing alarming occurs as they begin the search, as expected. No one from Garnet comes in to try and stop them. Certainly, Fort knows what they’re doing.

It only takes Kim Jaejoong half an hour to get to the headquarters. From the way he catches his breath and the state of his crumpled clothes, he must have gotten straight out of bed and wore whatever his hand first reached. Probably even beat a few red lights.

“What’s going on now?”

Taeyong pats down his torso and when he comes up with no candy, he screams and turns to Jaejoong with a flat face.

Jaehyun, Doyoung and Jaejoong suppress a comment about how peculiar he is before the first two get back in browsing files and going through a laptop.

“We’re looking for anything about Lee Namgyu and Jung Hajin’s agreement about me being a Garnet member.”

Jaejoong still hasn’t moved from his spot. “Why?”

As Taeyong already went back in rummaging through the endless books, Jaehyun updates Jaejoong about the summarized version of their discovery regarding the latter’s boss that renders him utterly speechless and unsurprisingly distraught.

“I know.” The knife thrower waves dismissively as he flips a book’s pages, not even looking like he’s still searching. “That’s how sly and vicious your crush is. Can you just help us?” He casually throws a book to Jaejoong’s direction.

The doctor catches it easily and places the book at the long table. “What should I do?” He clears his throat and breathes out the heaviness in his chest. This is not the right time to be dejected for someone who has a knack for lying straightforwardly even to a loyal follower.

From the day he arrived in Garnet until the second Fort left for America, was there a time he didn’t find a reason to lie to Jaejoong whenever they talked?

_Who even are you to feel betrayed, Jaejoong? You’re just one of his many blinded subordinates._

His self-pity is interrupted as Doyoung snaps a finger.

“Guys, look.”

The three men stand behind him to look at what he’s doing in the computer. A profile of a man is on the screen and Doyoung clicks a hyperlink that leads him to a page of information.

“It’s not related to the agreement, but I found Jung Hajin’s profile and noticed an odd detail, or the lack thereof. There are is heir stated here. It’s only normal that Jung Yunho’s name should be here, right?”

Taeyong seems unbothered by it as he playfully pokes Doyoung’s head. “You’re being paranoid. Even in Red Phoenix, my name wasn’t found in Lee Namgyu’s profile.”

Doyoung swats the knife thrower’s hand away. “That’s because he was ashamed of you.”

The statement has Taeyong comically reeling, clutching his chest as he looks at everyone. “And what are you trying to say? That Fort’s father is ashamed of him? There were no heirs under Kim Taejun’s name in their system as well.”

“I’m saying that it doesn’t make sense. Jung Hajin has no reason to not put Jung Yunho in his profile. That’s like saying he doesn’t recognize him.”

Taeyong scoffs, grabs a chair and squats on it while twirling his hair and scanning Jung Hajin’s profile. “And our situations are night and day. I was treated like a prisoner in Red Phoenix. Does it look like Yunho’s a prisoner? Ha! Off white tux must be the new orange! And Yunho might not even be in New York!” He jumps out of his seat and surges to the computer, fingers flying over the keyboard while Doyoung tries to shoo him. “Quick, he might be jailed somewhere in America. Can we search it here? Maybe he’s in their dungeon!” Taeyong turns towards Jaejoong with an excited grin. “What do you say, Jaej?”

“How do you know about that?”

Two more heads turn toward him.

“Know what.” Taeyong chews on nothing, fingers randomly drumming on the keys.

The doctor frowns. “That there’s a prisoner in the dungeon.”

Taeyong snorts and turns back to the laptop. “Don’t get me wrong, Jaej. I was saying –“

“Oh. Okay I thought you were talking about that. Sorry, my mind’s a mess.” Jaejoong mumbles, kicking dirt on the carpet.

“No, no. Fort told me he has prisoners.” Jaehyun looks around the room trying to find if there’s a shortcut to where the Garnet leader keeps his hostages.

“And when was that?” The knife thrower asks, still busy working the computer without a purpose. He’s the one who can’t wait to solve the issue yet at the same time, he’s the one doing nonsense.

Doyoung wants to strangle him.

“When he dropped by. The same night he allegedly took Irina.”

“And we’re talking about that right now because?”

Jaejoong chimes in. “I’m taking care of that prisoner. His name is Jung Hyunwoo.”

“Aww, a Jung!” The noisy keyboard clacking stops all of a sudden and then it’s dead silent. Taeyong corrects his posture before invading the doctor’s personal space and tips the latter’s face closer in a manner that has Jaehyun’s jealousy spiking at the most inconvenient time.

“Lead us to him. Now.”

“Listen, Taeyong. His name is the only thing I know about him. Jung isn’t exactly a rare surname.”

Jaejoong leads the two Invictus kingpins to the dungeon.

“It’s fine, it’s fine. If the guy turns out to be useless, I can just ask Fort. I know he’s already scrambling to get back here.”

“How long has he been here?” Jaehyun asks while cautiously eyeing the cold and narrow hall they’re passing through. The dungeon must be located in the very back of the building from the looks of it.

The doctor shrugs. “I never asked. When I came to Garnet, he’s already in the dungeon. Bringing him food and medicine was the first task given to me until I took over at the clinic and the usual stuff I did in Red Phoenix.”

“Is he sick?”

They make a turn and at the end of the hall is a steel door with no window to see through.

“Got a serious heart condition. And he can’t walk.”

“Why?” Taeyong tilts his head, memorizing the code Jaejoong enters to unlock the door.

A soft click echoes before the doctor gets in first, casting them an inscrutable gaze. “Chopped legs.”

Jaehyun doesn’t know why he feels uneasy.

Jaejoong feels for the switch on the wall and then they’re blinded by the harsh, white light. The prison looks almost like the torture chamber back in Red Phoenix except that it’s clean and doesn’t reek of strange bodily fluids.

There is a row of three cells resembling a cage. Not much room is available to be able to move around but for the only man in the dungeon, who’s currently locked up in the middle cell, space is unnecessary as he has no legs to require to it.

The man, Jung Hyunwoo wakes at the sound of footsteps. Without proper care for his appearance, the facial hair has grown to a length that makes him easily mistaken for somebody older than his age.

“Doctor Kim?”

His voice is hoarse and he coughs a few times into a closed fist, wrist bony. His body looks sicker than Jaejoong let on.

“Don’t worry. Fort isn’t back yet.” Jaejoong asks the two if they prefer the cell unlocked, nodding when Taeyong turns down the suggestion. “They got some things to ask you.”

“Who are you?” Hyunwoo squints through a blurry sight from oversleeping.

Taeyong crouches and holds onto the cold bars, wondering how someone sick could stay here for a long time. Not that he’s concerned for their well-being. Just curious. “We work with Fort. You don’t need to know who we are. I just want to know if you’re related to Jung Hajin and Jung Yunho.”

At the mention of Fort’s real name, the prisoner’s face contorts into a mixture of strong emotions, but mainly anger.

“I can’t…” He weakly shakes his head, staring hard on the ground. “I can’t talk if…if you’re friends with my brother.”

“Brother?” Jaehyun’s frown deepens as he recalls a specific detail about the Garnet leader. “Fort said he’s the only child. But we’re not...we’re not friends.” Thinking of them being more than business partners and betrayal being the foundation of it ticks him off. “He wronged us big time.”

Hyunwoo chuckles through an onslaught of coughs as Jaejoong goes to fetch some water. “Is that so? It’s not new. He has always been treacherous. If you promise not to tell him I talked to you, I will answer whatever questions you have. But I suppose it’s fine if he knows.” With a shaky hand he takes the glass of water from the doctor. “At least he will finally put an end to my misery.”

Water spills as he drinks eagerly, dying to quench the thirst.

Jaejoong takes the cup. “What makes you think he will? I don’t know what you did but it must be worse than being a storyteller to his enemies.”

“Why are you here?” Taeyong toys with the cell’s lock, staring at the prisoner with an eerie undertone despite his unthreatening stance. “Are you older than him?”

“I’m older. But we have different mothers. He was born from a mistress.”

The teeny bit of information stops the knife thrower from rattling the lock. “…Then you should’ve been the heir.”

The man shakes his head, clutching the thin sheet that barely protects him from the cold or hide him from the demons lurking in the dark when nighttime falls. “Garnet doesn’t have an heir – it never had. I’m sick. My heart is weak; I’m not cut out for this kind of life.”

“So he was taken in?”

“Our father didn’t want to, but his mother begged our father to take him in if he wouldn’t marry her. My own mother died from hatred. That’s a nicer way of saying she committed suicide.” Despair is nearly felt in the way Hyunwoo’s voice quivers. He may be getting old but the wounds of the past remain fresh like it happened yesterday. “I really don’t wish to talk about this.”

Jaehyun quickly kneels next to Taeyong when Hyunwoo begins to recoil; he cannot let their potential source to keep them oblivious. “We’ll get you out of here and send you to a hospital. Please. We need to know.”

Jaejoong’s brows furrow in worry. “How are you gonna do that? Don’t make a promise you can’t keep.”

Jaehyun doesn’t take his eyes away from Hyunwoo as he points at his husband to Jaejoong. “We got this guy here.”

“You must know something about Jung Hajin and Lee Namgyu’s friendship.” Taeyong’s ass meets the ground when he gets tired of crouching. “Heard they were like two peas in a pod.”

Mistrust shines bright in the dull eyes of the prisoner. Promises do not work on someone who has lost all hope. But he talks anyway and accepts another promise to see the outside world, to get another chance in life even if he knows there’s a hundred percent chance he’ll get the opposite. “I know Lee Namgyu. Before I was thrown here, I used to ask what was going on in the organization so if ever I got healthy enough, I might consider taking over. Lee Namgyu is the leader of Red Phoenix, right?”

“Was.” Taeyong corrects as he leans against the cell, cheek pressed on a bar with his sharp gaze slipping through a gap and wrapping Jung Hyunwoo in its icy embrace. “Red Phoenix is gone. My father is dead.”

Jung Hyunwoo’s eyes widen before he scrambles in a weak state to get to the door of his cell. “You are Ethan Lee.”

However, the knife thrower stays impassive. “Yes, I am. I feel like a celebrity. Does everybody know who I am?”

“How wouldn’t I know?” Hyunwoo coughs to the side and continues. “My father said if I couldn’t get healthy, you would take over Garnet.”

Taeyong straightens like he got electrocuted. “What.”

The sharpshooter as well as the doctor is frozen in stupefaction.

Seeing the trio’s reaction, Hyunwoo realizes nobody knows about what he just mentioned. “The merger! Red Phoenix and Garnet were going to merge.”

The cell bars rattle as Taeyong slams both hands against them while glaring at the man inside. “Yunho literally had Lee Namgyu killed and his group wiped out. What the fuck do you mean?”

“Because Yunho wanted to be the kingpin. He was a mistress’ son, so even if he was taken in, father never wanted him to be the leader. Putting him as the face of Garnet is a disgrace! But he was allowed to temporarily lead it when father retired and he trusted no one else to handle his group, and while waiting for the merger. Yunho knows about it – which his reign will not be for long.”

“He stole Red Phoenix’s proposals. That caused our downfall.”

Hyunwoo glances down as though baffled before perking up. “That proposal must be the one Garnet was waiting for – because that would tie the two groups together and start the Korean Mafia organization. Like the Corsican here. You, Ethan Lee should’ve been the leader of a lot of Korean crime groups. If Yunho stole it, it’s most likely that he wanted to stop the merger from happening.”

 _Huh._ Apparently, Lee Namgyu has enormous plans for his deranged son that he completely hid from all the important people’s sight. He had everyone fooled into thinking he never gave a flying fuck for Taeyong. All those days and nights of torture weren’t just to groom him into being a puppet of Red Phoenix, but to prepare him for an overwhelming future.

 _Am I supposed to dislike him less?_ Taeyong grits his teeth.

“He didn’t want to step down from leadership and give it to you. His mother couldn’t marry into the family and this is the only way he’d stay. Because if the merger happened, father would kick him out. Regardless of his efforts as an acting kingpin, he would get thrown aside like dirt. Jung Yunho is nothing but an inferior outcome begotten from a mistake.”

Jaehyun looks at Taeyong’s side profile. “So you’re not just a Garnet member.”

“Did my evil of a brother do it?” Jung Hyunwoo laughs but it soon gets interrupted by a wracking cough and when he talks again, he’s a little breathless. “You, Ethan Lee, were the talk since Garnet partnered up with Red Phoenix. We knew you exist, but Lee Namgyu didn’t want to introduce you. So from reality, you became a myth. You would’ve been introduced when the groups finally merged. That was the plan.”

“Where is Jung Hajin? Why is he letting all of these happen? He must know Red Phoenix is go–”

“Father is dead.” Jung Hyunwoo visibly wilts.

Jaehyun’s hands clench into tight fists, angry for being easily fooled. “Fort said he lives overseas.”

At the sidelines, Jaejoong pretends he’s not hearing all of this.

“That’s what everyone thinks, I guess. But he’s dead. Yunho killed him. I know because he used to come here to brag about having the best time of his life. Yunho killed him. Yunho had my legs chopped off so I wouldn’t be able to escape because I knew too much and kept me here as a trophy of his victory.”

Taeyong stares at the other man’s eyes, searching within them the answer to the question hanging on the tip of his tongue. He doesn’t see it, but he knows what it is anyway. “Did he keep other trophies?”

Hyunwoo frowns yet nods assertively. “A woman. She stayed here for a short time. More than a week but less than two. I can’t remember much of her stay but I think her name was Olivia.”

That’s it. He finally has the confirmation he needs. What more did he want, though? His own sister confessed of the culprits of her torment. Did he want to hear it a second time so killing Jung Yunho would be more pleasurable?

Exactly.

Jaejoong steps away from his spot near the door and stands before Taeyong who has turned his back towards the prisoner after that jarring disclosure, looking at Hyunwoo resignedly. “Olivia is Ethan’s sister.”

Hearing this, Jung Hyunwoo slowly drops to the floor with his gaze glued to the knife thrower’s broad back. “She was thrown out when she kept trying to fight with the previous guy that kept us locked up. She was a handful. With broken hands, she fought. Her screams filled this room even though all of us knew it hurt to do so. It’s a good thing she has legs to run away from here. I would do the same if Fort didn’t have mine sawed.”

“Heh,” Taeyong cheekily huffs out as he faces Fort’s half-brother once again. “Why didn’t they cut off her legs.”

“Yunho is crazy. Only he will understand himself. Your sister wouldn’t be able to report anyway. She couldn’t talk. She was probably scared. Who would want to fight Fort head on?”

“Me.” The knife thrower runs a hand through his hair before pocketing it. Jaehyun definitely sees a twitch there. “Well, you told us everything we wanted to know. Jaej, take him to the nearest hospital after I talk to Fort.”

“Why not now?”

“The minions are still here and since Fort doesn’t give a shit about his brother, he might have him executed. Worse, including you. Jaehyun made this guy a promise. Gotta keep it. When I talk to him and give him an ultimatum, he won’t be able to do anything.” Taeyong grips Jaehyun’s arm. “Just wait and see.”

Then they’re out of the dungeon, back to the office.

Jung Hyunwoo reclines with his eyes closed as he takes a slow lungful of breath. “Is Ethan Lee a good man?”

Jaejoong looks at him funny before making his way to the door. “If you think your brother’s crazy, Ethan is ten times more than that. You should be glad and be scared at the same time. All of us.”

The door closes with a familiar slam.

“Damn. So that huge share Red Phoenix had in Garnet basically means they were on the way to becoming one, huh.” Yuta ruminates. “Lee Namgyu sure kept it so well from us.”

“We were nobodies in Red Phoenix. Nameless skeletons of the group. If he was to tell anyone such secret, it would be to the board,” says Doyoung. “We wouldn’t know until the merger that Lee Taeyong is literally Red Phoenix’s hidden weapon.”

“You know,” Taeyong casually lounges on Fort’s chair in the main meeting room with his feet wiggling left and right on top of the desk, knocking off piles of papers. Unraveling this whole tribulation from Garnet is a moment most pleasing to my career.”

Jaehyun casts him a look that screams _what the fuck are you on?_

“Just agree with me. You don’t have to believe everything I say. The most important thing is you _know_ I have a flourishing and stable career.”

“After this, do you really think it’s gonna be stable? Everyone thinks Invictus is over even after all the reassuring mails we sent to the clients. Pulling a prank on them is not exactly ideal,” says Doyoung as he mentally beats himself over the countless messages he dealt with in Korea.

The knife thrower hums before pulling out a dagger from its strap and stabs the desk, playfully twisting the blade. Without candies to eat, he has to keep himself busy with anything he can get his hands on before he _explodes._ “They just have to deal with it. Technically, Garnet is mine. And you all think it’s awesome, right?” He looks at them one by one and grins. “It’s awesome! Great. It’s essential that we collectively agree on something.”

“But back to the main point. Knowing Garnet’s standing, do you think they have the guts to be temperamental? To be upset? Only teenagers get upset at being neglected for a moment. Imagine,” he sits properly and plucks the knife out of the desk only to lightly press the blade over his palm, turning it clockwise. “Mine and Fort’s assets combined. Imagine the investment in projects. Legal or illegal. Fuck the market. Imagine my worth. They cannot bitch about Invictus postponing work. It’s just a little setback. Does it matter?”

Yuta sniggers. “Listening to you now, it’s hard to come to terms that you used to not wanna partake in this work.”

“I still don’t wanna partake in anything headache inducing, Nakamoto. I just like fighting.” Taeyong wiggles his brows at Jaehyun. “Plus, this is not just about me anymore. This is…this means giving Jaehyun everything he deserves. So you,” he points the knife at the younger. “You better call your homophobic dad. He might wanna change his mind about loathing you and I. We both literally have even more money now. If we take it all in cash, we’re going to drown and not be able to get out of those money mountains.”

“Speaking too soon?” The first kingpin expresses doubt. “Who says Fort won’t do anything about this? It’s not that I don’t believe we can beat him but at the very least, it’s not gonna be easy.”

“It is really not. I’ve been running on five hours of sleep since I packed up to get to Honfleur. And I’m hungry. Jaej, call someone to get food in the cafeteria. You do have a vendo, yeah?”

Jaejoong shakes his head with a sigh and gets out of the room.

“Is he mad?” Johnny asks.

Taeyong waves a hand dismissively. “Don’t mind him. Anyway, if Fort still wants to do something after the talk then let him do something. Anything. Everything. If he could bite the hand that fed him, cut if off and let it fester in a ditch, he could tear these renowned mobsters apart. Cosa Nostra is going to toss him away once he’s got nothing left to brag.”

Johnny complains. “I don’t know why a lot of them are crazy about Cosa Nostra. For what? The name?”

“Perhaps. The Russian mafia is ginormous too, but of course the Sicilian is a lot easier to get into.”

“Isn’t the Corsican…even the Unione Corse allies with Cosa Nostra?” Yuta turns to Jaehyun. “Don’t they know about Garnet leaving the Corsican?”

“Most likely not. And even if they do, what of it? They don’t care whether or not Garnet has a beef with anyone in that island. Although in our case, Flavio Ricci is willing to meddle and lend a gang because he got indirectly involved. But like we all know, no one is obligated to help you out.”

“Does it mean Red Phoenix never asked for help?”

“Only Fort can answer that.” Taeyong says. “We could ask him but none of us got a Ouija board right now. Besides, even if anyone did ask for help, seeing that Garnet had this planned from the start, why would they lend a hand?” He uses the dagger to tap the blade on his temple. “220.”

Doyoung bites his tongue to suppress a snicker. “That’s exaggerated. I don’t know who gave you a test in Red Phoenix but I’ll say it’s 160, tops – and IQ isn’t really a credible proof of intelligence.”

“Why are you so bitter, Doyoung? Don’t you eat enough carrots?”

The other glances at their squad leader. “Give me enough patience to deal with your husband.”

“Yeah, right.” The Japanese gunman giggles behind Doyoung. “Teach us, senpai.”

It actually manages to tug a chuckle out of Jaehyun. “You probably waited for so long to say that.”

“All of you fucking suck.” Taeyong flips them a solid fuck you one by one, except for Johnny. “Only Johnny deserves human rights in your squad.”

The man that was mentioned looks like he just had an epiphany while Jaehyun literally whines at not being picked when he deserves to be exempted by his own husband.

“That’s unfair!”

“Shut up Jaehyun or I’ll suck your dick.”

Silence ensues. Jaejoong comes back with snacks from the vending machine. “Uh, what’s up?”

Johnny blinks a few times before squinting at the redness of Jaehyun’s ears. “Why are you blushing?”

The question sends Yuta into hysterics. “Oh Lord he wants it. Please hold it in while we’re here!”

“Stop! Ganging Up! On me!” The sharpshooter snatches a cookie from Jaejoong and angrily tears the wrapper. “We’re going to face an impending doom and you’re all here talking about my sex life.”

“It was _your_ husband that started it!” Doyoung nearly shouts in embarrassment at how childish they all are.

The next several hours are spent waiting if they’re going to have to prepare themselves for a clash despite the seemingly lack of animosity from the few Garnet men in the headquarters. Files and files are being checked in the computer while they stay in the meeting room, anticipating the arrival of Jung Yunho.

Any minute now, the inevitable confrontation will happen. There is nothing more crucial than the destruction of one of the strongest French mobs on the horizon. Beyond doubt, Fort will try to keep his place on the pinnacle of success rather than stall.

“The information is limited. I can only access over half a hundred transactions and then the system is redirecting me to the first page. There’s also a time limit to view the files. Garnet is too careful with all the security check in the system being either iris or finger print recognition.”

Taeyong repeatedly and irritatingly taps the pen against the desk as he nudges the monitor, earning a huff from Doyoung. “Are those the only options? This room has a passcode for employees whose irises and finger prints aren’t registered.”

“These are the only options. Perhaps it’s because this computer is used by Fort. At least I managed to save the accessible records.”

“Keep it up, Kim Doyoung. There’s a lot more for you to do if the odds are in our favor.”

“What odds are we talking about?”

None of them heard the soft beep of the door opening. Fort walks in collectedly with his assistant, Max in tow.

The Invictus members brace themselves. Taeyong remains sitting cool in Fort’s seat, only putting his feet down. “Oh great! Is this the execution? Because smack dab before stands Pontius Pilate who will attempt to wash his hands before coming for the son’s neck.” Wearing the most irritating smile, the knife thrower stands up and glances at Max. “Second-in-command could’ve stayed if you didn’t really want me to be here.”

Yunho laughs as he removes his gloves and hands them to Max. “You can’t seriously think that mighty of yourself.”

“Oh, but you can?”

The tension in the room thickens by each passing second. Jaehyun and Yuta have good grips on their guns while Johnny stands before Doyoung as a cover. Jaejoong, however, stares unfathomably at his current leader.

“Because I see in your eyes the wish to execute me when you know I’ve done nothing against you just to keep your faux reign in peace.”

Fort derisively huffs at them. “There is no need for you to threaten the leader that owns the headquarters you are loitering in. And Ethan,” He then smiles at the knife thrower amiably. “I returned as soon as I could because I was told some unwelcomed people trespassed in my property. Would you care to be less hostile?”

Chill surges down Jaehyun’s spine at how quick the man’s expression changed from contempt to friendliness.

A pregnant pause, and then Taeyong’s squinting at his watch. “Wow, you actually took 10 hours. What, huge project held you back?” Tauntingly, he grins at the Garnet kingpin. “I wonder what that is.”

“It’s not easy to say no to the Sicilian mobs. You picked a wrong time to defy me, Taeyong. It’s a good thing they’ve taken a liking on me, or else it would sully my name coming back here on a whim.”

Jaehyun cannot hold himself back anymore and rages. “You’re already starting to get into Cosa Nostra?! And here we thought that was just a rumor!”

Yunho looks at the Invictus kingpin like he pities him, further infuriating Jaehyun. “I see that you’ve finally brought to light how I’m going to drop Invictus. There are thousands of Sicilian associates in the US and if I want to familiarize myself with how things work in Uncle Sam, I must watch.”

“Not only that.” Taeyong walks around the desk and leans against it with the knife cradled to his chest as his arms cross over it, naturally drawing Yunho’s attention to the weapon. One wrong move and it will cut through the air and his jugular. “We know you used Dragonaire to get the projects that would merge Red Phoenix and Garnet, the merger that would spearhead a Korean mafia organization. We know you didn’t want to help us when Sicheng got abducted because if I went alone, I might get killed. We know you murdered your father and kept Jung Hyunwoo and my sister as memorabilia of your schemes.”

As Taeyong enumerates his sins, Yunho’s smile drops.

“You can’t be too sure.”

“How can we not be too sure, Yunho?” The knife thrower’s voice thunders in the room as he glowers menacingly. “I said we _know._ No uncertainties. You’re done for. Don’t try to purify yourself anymore.”

The two hold a staredown for a while, neither wanting to back down. Jaehyun considers just gunning down the traitor point-blank, but they’re still in Garnet’s territory. Reinforcements might be waiting outside in case of a shootout.

The first one to yield is Fort. “I see. I knew there’s something wrong with the cops raiding you. Based on the news, you got so well-prepared that they can’t find a single trace.”

Jung Yunho feels utterly cheated. _So this is how it feels like._ He wants to kill every single one of them right now and leave the headquarters with the only sounds being his laughter and the squelching of blood beneath the soles of his shoes.

How _dare_ they expose him.

“Why did you even help Invictus, Fort?” Jaehyun asks. “Doesn’t that make your effort to eradicate Red Phoenix pointless?”

“It did, but Ethan Lee approached me and I thought, wouldn’t it be more entertaining if I continued to play the good guy? I could do business with Casanov without those proposals. I don’t care about using those pieces of paper for myself – but those papers could ruin me since it would serve as the bridge between Red Phoenix and Garnet for the merger. And Ethan taking over this gigantic organization! Since the merger won’t happen anyway, I had no problems giving the projects back to you because what? I would still benefit from it. Who did you partner up with, Jaehyun?”

Fort’s image continuously cracks and before them is no more of the leader they respect, but an enemy that is slowly reaching his end. “Who did you literally kneel for so you could survive? Didn’t he tell you, Taeyong? This man, right here, looked so _pathetic_ calling my name outside the gates that day. If I didn’t return the proposal, you wouldn’t stop, right, Jeong Jaehyun?”

The Invictus kingpin almost pulls out his gun but Yuta stops him.

“You are greedy; you took those proposals as if you made them, as if you were Red Phoenix’s heir, as if you were this legend in the making.” Fort continues on his diatribe to derail the attention and pummel Jaehyun’s _amour popre_. “You tried to be Ethan Lee so bad. You would come for me if I didn’t give in. If it meant pulling that lousy Invictus, you would sell your soul to the devil to gather all these equally abysmal groups to help you – so I gave it back to narrow down the pests I would have to get rid of.”

“I pretended to be the good guy and thought I could just ruin you from the inside out, slowly but surely. But Invictus is growing fast! My fucking bad. My patience ran out and it was how I knew I had to stop playing around. If I didn’t do this, I’m afraid either of you would be better than me. There can only be one Asian group reigning in Europe.” Yunho inhales deeply and brushes back the tuft of hair that fell over his face. “There can only be one.”

Taeyong’s blue eyes roll at how overly dramatic Yunho turns out to be. “What an award-winning speech. Could’ve just said you wanted to continue ruling, you weren’t _that_ evil to deny us of blessings, and when you realized you were doing more harm than good you wanted to take the blessings back.”

“Don’t mock me–”

“You shouldn’t have put me under Garnet.”

“Oh?” Yunho suddenly retrieves his composure and chuckles, finding whatever Taeyong said amusing. Behind him, Max gives Jaejoong an indecipherable look. “That was for my own benefit. A reminder that we may be connected, that a piece of Red Phoenix may be in in Garnet but it’s no better than a decoration. Above all, Lee Namgyu’s heir was highly anticipated by a number of my clients and friends. With you under Garnet, it would boost my credibility. Don’t you remember the prices dumped on your head in the auction? That’s how much you are valued – much more than that. Your existence alone is a treasured asset.”

“So you hate me but you wanna be close to me? Fucking pathetic. Just say you are envious of everything I have that I didn’t work hard for. Just say you are jealous because I could have both Red Phoenix and Garnet without doing anything. You, on the other hand…” Giggles spill out of Taeyong. “You literal son of a bitch had to prove yourself. But because you’ve got a mistress’ blood in you, you would still get disowned. Wait. You were never acknowledged. That’s disheartening, isn’t it?”

“Ethan… You must understand that I didn’t want to kill you myself. Maybe let you die if the opportunity knocks on the door, but I will never put a bullet through your head on my own. I’m not entirely heartless. Even when I settle in Italy and leave Invictus alone, I will not kill you. That was not the primary agenda. The main plan was to make you realize you cannot hold as much power and influence as I have. When Invictus’ rating drops I can even give you some petty job. I am _obsessed_ with helping.”

“The fraud I committed by involving the Corsican mafia, even if it failed, I would still strip Invictus of influence that it would affect your standing in the underground business. When I formally join the Cosa Nostra, all business with you will be terminated. Didn’t your group climb the ladder all because it was connected to me? When I’m gone, you will drop to a second rate for sure. You guys are nothing but a charity case. Half of the connections you made were because of me. If I drop you, wouldn’t they think there was a problem that Garnet had no choice but to neglect you?”

The knife thrower gently places the dagger on the desk and peers up the ceiling, thinking. “Err… About the shipment mishaps. That was really bold of you.”

Yunho smirks, a tongue poking at the corner of his mouth. “So you just figured that out? Actually, that was unintended. Then it happened again and I couldn’t just pass up on the chance. Don’t put me on that kind of pedestal, Ethan. If you were a good leader, we would be doing this way back. But you’re irresponsible. I don’t know what they see in you. You’re only bloodthirsty but when it comes to keeping the group afloat, you’re an airhead.”

Doyoung harrumphs. “That’s what an outsider would say. Every single one in Invictus knows he can do our jobs if he puts his mind to it. He has a choice not to, because we have another capable leader. If he was not good enough, do you think your father would hand Garnet over to somebody else’s son? Jung Hajin already had you…what does that say about _your_ worth? It’s not just about putting money in the bank, Fort. It’s about longevity. With the way you’re going about this, you’re not going to last long.”

The Garnet kingpin seethes. “You have to admit I _am_ a genius. I fooled all of you for nearly four years.”

“Alright, you motherfucking clown. You really used Dragonaire as a disguise. Did you not think that I would confront the Corsican? Even if I didn’t, I know for a fact Dragonaire was too little to get here. They couldn’t make it locally, they wouldn’t make it here.” Taeyong is starting to get vexed.

“Of course I considered that! But you shouldn’t have discovered it was me – why, did you investigate Dragonaire? Is that why Jaehyun’s minions are here? How would I know you’d find someone to tell you the truth? The only mistake I did was underestimating your determination to get to the bottom of this. If this didn’t work, I would think of another plan, and _another_ until it works. The clusterfuck was just born out of that one mistake.”

“Fort…” The knife thrower crosses the room and stops right in front of the kingpin of Garnet. Jaehyun worriedly calls him, thinking the enemies would seize the chance and hurt Taeyong but Max remains immobile, sizing up the latter. Yunho’s hands are still free of weapons. “Fort, you’re only better in terms of sales talk. When it comes to evidences, you are as careless as my beloved Uehara Risa. You know her, don’t you? Evidences are meant to be cleared, not kept as trophies.”

Taeyong’s eyes do not blink as they puncture through the older man’s soul. “I would have to make you pay for what you did to her. I am vindictive, Yunho. I demand payment when it’s due.”

“And what are you gonna do?” Yunho challenges. “Freeze Garnet’s system? Take all of my properties?”

“As we speak, Kim Doyoung is already contacting Unione Corse for them to release a photo of you to the public.”

Yunho’s eyes quickly dart over to Doyoung who has been holding a phone all throughout.

“You are to take _my_ identity. Elliot De la Croix was made for whoever’s going to get caught – and it is not me. Since you wanna hide my real relevance to the mafia so bad… You will be the wanted kingpin of Invictus.”

Doyoung speaks through the phone and ends the call, showing it to Taeyong. “Done.”

Taeyong gives him a look of approval before facing the Garnet leader once again with a small smile, dusting off the latter’s shoulder. “Jung Yunho, if you don’t want to kill you, you have to go. Now, while I’m nice.”

“You’re going to let him go? Taeyong!” Yuta exclaims in disbelief and Jaehyun shushes him with a grip to the wrist.

“I don’t believe it’s going to be _this_ easy.” Fort growls, his voice low and baleful to which the knife thrower laughs at.

“Sure it won’t be! You will live in secrecy for the rest of your life as Flavio Ricci will hunt you down to the ends of the Earth. You will sleep and wake fearing for your life. I hope you know how to hide well. If you dare expose us, even if Unione Corse can cover it up, I will not be so lenient anymore. And before I forget…” He sticks a finger between his teeth, tearing a hangnail. “We’re officially under the Corsican Mafia. Don’t test them.”

Jung Yunho chuckles at first because he cannot, _for the love of God_ , believe the situation he is in. One second he’s building rapport with his supposed associates and the next, he’s facing the biggest crisis. Life is truly, madly, indecisive. It will let you have a taste of sweet perfection and then it will feed you with bitter loss.

And then his chuckle turns into a full-blown laughter. All those years he worked the hardest to be involved in the process of Garnet becoming what it is now vanish in a snap because he got outsmarted.

“Well,” he says when he finishes laughing out the misery of his tragic fate, wiping a lone tear brimming on the corner of his eye. “I guess I should be glad you’re only going to steal my fortune and benevolently spare my head. It was nice while it lasted, Ethan and Jaehyun. Just remember… I regret nothing.”

Now helpless, Yunho turns in his heel to leave but Taeyong has one more thing to ask.

“Did my father ask Garnet for help?”

“Yes, he did.” Fort’s blank gaze lands on Jaejoong. “I never answered.”

And just like that he’s gone, followed by Max.

Johnny rushes to the windows to see if there are men waiting to attack. Not a single soul can be seen. Soon, the whole building is devoid of a Garnet member, except for Taeyong and Jaejoong.

The others must have been alerted of the result of the two kingpins’ confrontation and since everyone that works for Jung Yunho might be hunted down as well, they do not dare to remain in the headquarters anymore. Besides, Garnet is about to undergo major alterations.

“Garnet indeed moves in the shadows, don’t they?”

They look at the knife thrower and realize what that sentence actually means more than it says. Garnet moves in secret to bask in triumph by itself before surprising everybody with another feat. At the same time, it slithers in the dark to bite hindrances on the neck and effectively poison them.

It is a cut above the rest with the joint forces of intelligence and treachery – the same formula the others do, yet done either gravely or insufficiently.

Sad to say, Garnet meets its inescapable conclusion too early in its peak.

Taeyong clicks his tongue. “Doyoung, tell Unione Corse to organize an interview with the media as soon as possible. It’s important that they emphasize clearing Ethan Lee and Red Phoenix’s image and conclude that Invictus was targeting the casino because they want to get rid of business rivals – and that they were going to do the same to the establishments. After that, go to the room where internals easily access the system. Save all records and then deactivate Garnet’s system. Do it however you can. We cannot leave a single chunk of Garnet in case Jung Yunho points fingers – because now, he is the leader of Invictus and Invictus is the only group he’s leading, nothing else.”

“What about our products left in Bordeaux?” Jaehyun asks.

“A press conference won’t happen right away, so the guys back there can still grab the most important ones and bring it here.” Taeyong explains while sending a quick update to the Black Room squad.

As installing a new system would take hours to do, Doyoung beckons Johnny and Yuta to follow him and start the task.

Alright. The deal with Fort is over for the meantime. How are they going to start anew? Exhaustion finally seeps into Jaehyun’s body as he drops on a seat, watching Taeyong tap on his phone.

“So they’re going to bring the items. Files as well. But how are we going to continue if Yunho’s coming out as the kingpin of Invictus?”

“What’s going to happen is they’re going to completely demolish that building. It will take them days to do it. And then,” Taeyong sits on the desk and softly pokes the younger’s cheek, wordlessly telling him to liven up. “we’ll get back to our pending transactions, work with the same people we’ve been working with. Yunho may be the one they will know as Invictus’ leader, but the businesses are still with us. Garnet’s will stop – all at once. We can’t go with our old name anymore, so you might as well start thinking of a new one.”

“What name?” Jaehyun racks his brain as he lets the knife thrower mindlessly scratch over his shaved hair. “So Doyoung is terminating Garnet but we’ll take over their transactions too?”

“I think we should. Under the new name, of course. Basically, it’s the merger that Yunho wanted to stop. What we can save from Invictus, take it. What we can gather from Garnet, we take it. Their clients are left without a choice once Elliot gets exposed. I’m sure the other associates will not dare to stay with Fort since he’s powerless now.”

The sharpshooter looks at Taeyong and when their gazes meet, that’s when reality dawns on him at last – Ethan Lee just fulfilled his greatest dream of having _this_ much power.

Lee Taeyong, who once wished for his downfall just built him a shrine.

Oh how things have changed.

Jaehyun swears that when things are steady again, he’s going to marry Lee Taeyong for the second time.

Their eye contact is broken by someone clearing his throat.

Kim Jaejoong seems to be embarrassed about interrupting the couple as he awkwardly points to the door. “I’m heading out for a sec.”

“Where are you going?”

“Back in my place. Gotta fetch something.” Without waiting for a response, the doctor disappears out of the room looking faintly tense.

“Let him be. He’s heartbroken. When he returns, help him take Jung Hyunwoo out of his cage.”

Even if the doctor keeps his mouth shut, Taeyong can still interpret the swirl of emotions in his eyes. Kim Jaejoong was easy to read before he became a member in Garnet and he believes the man will come to his senses sooner or later.

What should he do? Should he just take it and start packing up, then hide somewhere in the other half of the world? He managed the group for years without a hitch and then it’s gone, just like that? Shouldn’t he do _something_?

But what will it be? The whole country will be after him in a matter of hours. No matter what he does to retaliate, to satisfy that perturbing itch for vengeance, he has the short end of the stick. Even if he flips the world upside down a hundred times, he’s going to suffer more damage compared to inflicting it.

_Is it really the end for me?_

Knocks drag him out of a sorrowful introspection. His assistant, Max, opens the door of his bedroom and pokes his head in. “Sir, someone’s here for you.”

“I told you not to disturb me–”

“Am I a disturbance now?”

Yunho hears a voice that he’s not expecting. Max leaves just as Jaejoong gets in, closing the door softly and leaving the two to talk in private.

 _What made Max think it was fine to let the doctor inside?_ The former kingpin will have to drill a new rule in his assistant’s head later.

“How did you know I’m here?”

There’s nothing in Yunho’s gaze but animosity. During the times they stood in the same room before, not once did Jaejoong ever see the other be _this_ antagonistic. It only speaks volume of how much of a fraud Jung Yunho is, putting up an effulgent front and concealing his real, cruel intentions behind the numerous diamond-embedded masks he wears in the galas he holds.

“You brought me here once when…” _Don’t go there, Jaejoong._ “You brought me here once and told me this is where you _spend time_ with impersonal things. Because everything here comes and goes. No significance at all.”

“Jaejoong, stop beating around the bush. What do you want? Are you here to join me?”

“I–”

Yunho cuts him off. “Because if not, then you can go. I am not going to kill you, Jaejoong. Red Phoenix has always reeked off of you. That’s why I never got you involved deeper with the group because I have always known the stray that I adopted would come back to its owner.”

Acid drips from the man’s words, perforating the invisible icy barrier between them. Does he have an ounce of idea what his bluntness does?

“Is that…” Jaejoong’s gaze lands on Yunho’s ear, having no courage to look into those hateful eyes. “Is that why from a _butcher_ , you made me a _pastime?_ ”

“Is there more to you?”

_How does it feel to say it out loud, Jaejoong? To admit to yourself that you’re nothing but a liaison? How does it feel to hear it straight from him that you’re just one of the many?_

He smiles despite the raging storm in his chest. “No.”

Somehow, that irks Yunho even more. “Then why are you here if you have none to offer?”

“I want to ask. _Why?_ Why did you do all that? Even after I repeatedly told myself you’re an enemy, I cannot digest it. Why did you have to be so filthy?”

Yunho balls up his hand and turns around to stand by the window as it is pattered by rain drops, glaring at nothing outside. “Aren’t we all filthy? We live to tarnish this world. If we wash hands, then we cease to exist. You shouldn’t be questioning our nature as if you were forced to be here.”

_Why did he come? What was he expecting?_

“…Right. You’re right. I just felt like I deserve an explanation.”

Yunho gives him a side glance before the hatred contorting his face is replaced by amusement and he faces the doctor again, chuckling. “Jaejoong, don’t give me that face. I don’t really wanna be heartlessly frank because you’ve done nothing but perform your job well, but sex is sex. You look past it, you add more to it, and it’s not just sex anymore. You have to ask the other if they want to feel those piteous emotions.” A mocking snort after and then he’s reaching for the bottle of wine and pouring some in a glass. “This is why I hate being with the same person for more than one night. Instead of lustfully, they begin to look at me _funny._ ” He takes a sip and shrugs. “Don’t get me wrong – I don’t like you that way.”

If Jaejoong thought there’s nothing more in him that could break, then he’s awfully wrong.

“Not even a little bit?” His voice is surprisingly stable.

Silence.

“Can you please lie?” _Am I begging now? What am I so desperate for?_

The entire situation is funny and he wants to laugh at himself but the doctor holds on to the last bit of pride he has.

Jung Yunho just stares at him unnervingly, indifferent. “I’ve been lying since the start. You just take the bare minimum as the absolute most.”

In the end, he has nothing to hold on to. No truths, not even a lie.

“It’s my fault – and I get it. There’s no harm in trying to ask for a proper explanation as to why I feel toyed.”

“You were a toy,” Yunho says it like he’s talking to a child who cannot understand something so easy. “That is why you feel that way.”

At this point, Jaejoong feels nothing. He’s numb and apathetic. Perhaps it’s better this way. He cannot deny that he never saw them heading somewhere established from the get go. He nods firmly in understanding and tugs on his collar to somehow alleviate the suffocating feeling in his throat. Enough of this talk. He already heard what he needed to hear. “They’re going to make sure you’ll suffer, Yunho.”

“I know.” Yunho scowls and slams the glass down, the content spilling over. “Before you came, I was preparing myself for whatever’s in store for me for the next decades. Would you be so kind to show yourself out, Jaejoong? I don’t have time to entertain enemies.”

“Yunho, since you know my loyalty has always been with Taeyong, I just want to tell you that I am eternally grateful to him. He was the one that gave me a second chance, not you. So if he asks me to kill you, I will.”

The expression on Yunho’s face cracks the slightest bit and for a second, Jaejoong thinks the man’s hurt. But alas, it’s an illusion.

“You can’t do it.” Yunho says confidently.

Jaejoong is more confident than he is, though. “I can and I will. So please don’t give him a reason to tell me to do it, because I won’t be able to say no.”

It’s unbelievable that those are his last words to Yunho, but Jaejoong sucks it up and leaves, not even sparing Max a glance after the latter escorts him through the drizzling. The weather seems to be sensing his gloom.

As if he knows he will get reprimanded for letting Kim Jaejoong in without notifying his boss, Max rushes back inside and knocks on Yunho’s bedroom twice before getting in when he gets permission.

Yet rather than a punch or two, Yunho looks at him with hopeful eyes.

“Max, I just thought of what we can do.”

“…Is that so?”

Yunho scoffs. “You didn’t think we’d lose just like that, did you?” He side-eyes the other before picking up his wine, sipping contentedly.

“But sir, they have all the good decks of cards.”

“Having all the good cards isn’t enough if you don’t have the best one. Knowing all the tricks isn’t enough if you don’t know how to play.” A smirk curls on his lips and he looks out to the pool, watching the gentle ripples of the water. “Sometimes you have to cheat your way to win.”

It’s nighttime when most of the Invictus men arrive in Garnet’s headquarters. Some of the items they managed to bring are temporarily kept in boxes as the storage rooms need to be cleaned. The weapons are stored somewhere safe. Rebooting the system and creating a new one with all the records combined is taking hours and with Doyoung out to meet one of the members of the Unione Corse to finalize their next plans, installing the system has been postponed for another day.

“Come here,” Taeyong beckons Chanyeol. The tall man cowardly walks over, scratching his head.

“Boss, I’m sorry…?”

“Are you not sure, you son of a bitch?” He smacks the side of the guy’s head and grips the front of Chanyeol’s shirt, roughly tugging him closer. “Do you understand the gravity of what you did – or rather, what you didn’t do? If you weren’t shitfaced, you would have enough brain cells to tell me what went on.”

“B-but he said you knew! If I called, wouldn’t you just get mad at me for disturbing you?” Chanyeol gulps and taps his boss’ hand, grinning. “At least everything went well, no? Please spare me.”

Park Chanyeol may be a giant but he’s a giant dumbass. Taeyong shoves the man out of his sight and barks an order at him to stay outside with Yukhei and keep the gates close.

“Wait.”

Chanyeol returns with a wince, stiff as a rock. “Yes?”

An open palm is then presented to him. Chanyeol blinks a few times before literally perking up with a stupid smile and fishes out a lollipop from his pocket, giving it to Taeyong. “That’s strawberry.”

“Thanks. Get out of my face.”

Jaehyun luckily dodges Chanyeol as the latter rushes out of the office and chirpily waves at him before the elevator doors close. Shaking his head at the comical man, he steps inside and finds his husband sucking noisily on a lollipop while toying with the same dagger he’s been holding.

“Aren’t you sleepy?”

“Nope.” Taeyong says, popping the ‘p’. “I feel alive at – what time is it?”

“It’s almost 10.”

“24 hours ago, I was in Honfleur enjoying the Shrimp festival. Now I’m suffering.”

The sharpshooter sits on the desk and places Taeyong’s feet on his lap, massaging the older’s legs. “How exactly are you suffering?”

“I haven’t eaten properly and I’m a little tired. Do I stink?” Blue eyes shift over coal black ones before an arm shoots out to tug Jaehyun close and press the younger’s face to his armpit. “Smell.”

“Taeyong!” Jaehyun struggles to pull away, laughing. It’s not exactly gross since the older still smells divine, thanks to the perfume sticking to the blazer, but if someone else has seen it, they’re going to think the husbands are crazy.

Well, one of them is.

When Jaehyun comes up for air, Taeyong isn’t even fazed. He just looks at the younger expectantly while rolling the lollipop candy on his pink tongue.

“Well, you don’t stink. Did you even sweat?”

“It’s cold in this room, motherfucker. If you sweat despite the 18 degrees, there’s something wrong with your glands.”

“Fine. Now you smell me.” Jaehyun bites down his lip, trying to hold the laughter in as he waits if Taeyong’s going to do the same.

Much to his disappointment, the knife thrower just gazes out the window to watch the steady rainfall before biting down the candy. For once in his life, did Taeyong ever eat lollipops like a normal human would? Jaehyun wonders.

“Has Doyoung said something yet?”

“No. The last text he sent was thirty minutes ago. They’re still discussing the perfect time to release a statement to the public. Yunho’s photo was just released. I don’t know if he’s being bombarded by his associates right now but the phone in the other room was still ringing when I left. Isn’t there a phone here?”

“Nah. That’s weird, isn’t it?”

“It is.”

Taeyong wonders how the mafia world is taking this. Garnet is a household name in France’s underground business. Fort is a powerful figure that many want to connect to and beat at the same time. They are all possibly wondering what exactly happened, but since it’s an issue between Garnet and Red Phoenix’s former subordinate group, they should know better than to meddle.

It has been almost a day since he last saw his sister. By now, Jennie should’ve explained everything to her about her brother’s identity, and that the nightmare she thought she escaped from is going to haunt her forever. The only difference is that Dragonaire and Garnet hurt her, but with _former_ Invictus, she will be protected at all costs.

As long as she doesn’t try to get away from Ethan, that is.

Jaehyun notices the other’s faraway gaze. “What are you thinking of?”

“Olivia.”

Right. Jaehyun needs to apologize for not believing. “I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you. It was…not easy to just accept that–”

“I get it. You think they’re okay in the hideout?”

“Why don’t you call Jennie? I want to ask about the kids too.”

Taeyong pulls out his phone and shows Jaehyun how dead it is. “When Doyoung returns, you can go back.”

“What about you? Aren’t you going to check up on the twins?”

“Whose children are those?”

Jaehyun sighs and stops massaging the knife thrower’s legs. “There are a lot to work on, Doyoung said. Maybe I should do this the right way.”

“Maybe you should.”

“Should we call the hospital where Léonie’s confined? Ask about her.”

“If they’re not calling, then there’s nothing to get worried about.”

“Your phone is dead.”

“They will call you. Are you gonna say more? You might also be worried about Jung Hyunwoo. Don’t stress yourself on that one – Jaejoong’s babysitting him.”

Taeyong flicks the chewed stick and slides further down the seat, staring at the ceiling.

He might look calm and collected on the outside, he might look like he absorbed everything just fine, but Taeyong is stuck on the fact that he trusted Jung Yunho. He didn’t even know he could trust another person aside from Jaehyun. Maybe it grew unknowingly during the times he attended those meetings in place of his husband. Maybe it blossomed when Yunho cared for him like a brother would instead of a mere leader.

He wonders. While Yunho pretended to be a family, did he ever feel like it wasn’t a lie? The man was an outcast, hated by his own father and brother, and denigrated because of his mother’s background. Did it ever cross his mind that he could actually believe the lies he made? Did he ever think that maybe, being related to Ethan Lee no matter the reason wasn’t so bad?

Yunho is only in his late 30s. The age gap isn’t that wide for him to see Ethan as a younger brother.

Taeyong suddenly catches himself at that certain thought. He doesn’t want an extended family. He doesn’t need it. Jaehyun and Olivia are fine. If the twins are staying, he can deal with them. But he cannot, ever, in his whole life, be families with the man who put his sister in a harrowing trauma.

_“If you wanna fucking lead Invictus, don’t dwell on the only thing that’s in front of you. Because more often than not, those sparkly shits you look at are hiding the less inviting stuff.”_

_“You guys are overconfident. And you think I can’t fucking be of help to you just because I’m sick in the head.”_

He remembers saying those words and yet, he allowed himself to be pulled into a world of deception.

_“Secrets eventually get boring when they are not discovered.”_

Fort is correct about that. He got bored of his own game eventually.

“Hey, massage my legs.”

“Are you done daydreaming?”

“Fuck you.”

Actually, he’s not yet done. Taeyong watches through a sparse of hair curtaining his sight how Jaehyun’s deft fingers gently press up and down his leg. “Church.”

Jaehyun glances at him and raises a brow. “What?”

“I met a kid. Not really a kid. Teenage boy. I got my spine tattoo finished that day and was in a hurry because Lee Namgyu was looking for me. In my hurry to get back, I bumped to this kid who profusely apologized to me, too scared to look me in the eyes. I can still remember how his cologne smelled like so even though it’s probably insignificant, I can still remember it. Also, the church nearby was ringing its bell that time. So I can recall two things clearly. The cologne and the church.” Taeyong snorts. “Weird. I forgot that for so many years, but when we visited this church in Honfleur, it triggered a flashback.”

He thinks about it for a minute and when he notices that the sharpshooter is yet to say something, Taeyong peers at Jaehyun who’s now wearing a look of stunned disbelief, eyes wide as he stares at the knife thrower like he grew two heads.

“What, motherfucker? I am weird but you are weirding me out.”

Jaehyun remains stupefied for another minute before he falls into a heap of laughter, his body shaking as he laughs like a drain while Taeyong taps the dagger on the edge of the desk and waits for the younger to stop his madness.

“I’m going to start stabbing you if you don’t tell me –“

“We’re fated.”

“…Cheesy bastard.”

“No, I’m serious.” Jaehyun finally gets ahold of himself and chuckles as he continues on massaging Taeyong’s legs. “That kid is me.”

“…No fucking way.”

“Yes fucking way. I remember going around the city that day because I was looking for a good tattoo parlor for you know, when I officially join Invictus because I thought it would make me look more badass if I had some ink of my skin. But when I bumped into this guy wearing a hoodie who emitted an ominous vibe, I changed my mind. I think I almost peed my pants that day thinking all tattooed guys are bad news. And you are, but that’s fine. And… yeah, the church’s bell was ringing loud that time.” His laughter subsides into a fond smile, and he shakes his head at the perfect coincidence. “I feel like we’re in a simulation and someone is having fun messing up our lives.”

Taeyong wiggles his foot. “That is Jesus H. Christ for you. Speaking of Jesus, this looks like Mary washing his feet, you agree? Except that you’re not Mary and you are not washing my feet.” He grins but it doesn’t reach his eyes and Jaehyun never fails to feel the hairs on the back of his beck raise whenever the knife thrower does that.

“Huh. Why do you know so much about that?”

“I told you – no, I told Fort he’s Pontius Pilate and I’m Jesus, right? But that’s a poor comparison. He doesn’t really look like a Pontius Pilate.”

“I don’t know how Pontius Pilate looks like.”

“Oh dimple boy, weren’t we all Christians once?” Taeyong mimics Jennie’s line and looks smug about it, receiving a judging look from the sharpshooter.

“You? A Christian?” Jaehyun purposely twists his foot to an angle that would make the older curse like a sailor – and it worked.

“Son of a bitch! Were you trying to break my bone, fucking bastard? I will kill you.”

Jaehyun grins before whispering to the other’s ear. “I’d like to see you try.” 

Before the knife thrower can react, the door bursts open as a partly drenched Nakamoto Yuta barrels in with panic practically written on his face. “Garnet!”

“What?” Jaehyun gets off the desk and Taeyong stands up, immediately gripping his dagger.

“They’re here.” Yuta repeats as Johnny rushes in as well, and the sounds of footsteps echoing from the hallway make them look at the door, anticipating the arrival of the enemy.

Taeyong hisses. “Why did you let them in?”

“They threatened to cause a scene if we wouldn’t let them talk to you.”

The knife thrower licks his lips. “Motherfuckers don’t want to talk.”

Not a second later a number of men enter the office. The one at the very front with a long gash running across his right eye that appears to be leading them scans the room and smirks as his gaze lands on Taeyong. “Do you feel like a king in our leader’s throne?” He brushes past Johnny, staring the latter down and stops a fair distance from Taeyong and Jaehyun. “Please don’t punish your lackeys for letting us in because like we said earlier, we only wish to talk to you. After all, you cannot forbid us from entering work premises.”

Jaehyun levels his gaze, establishing dominance. “This building is not yours anymore. Did Fort not tell you about the awaiting consequence should you not hide?”

“We are well aware of that. In fact, our leader ordered us to see if it’s going to happen.” The man fishes out from his pocket what looks like a recorder and presses a red button on it.

What they hear from it leaves them horrified…and even Taeyong’s composure breaks.

_“Jaehyun?”_

Haechan’s shaky, terrified voice instantly mangles the sharpshooter’s heart. The boy is obviously crying.

_“Jaehyun! P-please listen to me, okay? Haera can’t talk so listen to me! When I…when I said you’re not our father…”_

Taeyong’s eyes harden. He remembers that – it was when they were waiting at the park for the sharpshooter to return from buying water. He remembers threatening the twins that he would tell Jaehyun what they said because it would break the man and it could be a way to get rid of them.

This is not how he expected it to be.

When he chances a look at the other and sees how wretched the first kingpin is, how downcast and angry his soul is, he _almost_ regrets wanting Jaehyun to hear those words.

**Almost.**

_“When I said that… I’m sorry! You… you are really more of a father than papa will ever be… That’s why I said you are not our father, because you are not him. Please, Jaehyun…”_

A tear escapes the sharpshooter’s eye.

_“Save us, please…”_

_“Keep quiet, little boy.”_

Jaehyun growls in absolute fury when Yunho’s voice follows Haechan’s desperate cry. “Jung Yunho! I will fucking kill you!”

He furiously screams and he’s a second away from pulling out a gun and planting bullets through these men’s heads. “Leave them alone or I swear to God I will fucking shove my gun down your throat and shoot you until you turn to dust –”

_“You must be screaming at me right now, Jaehyun. But hear me out. I will give you thirty minutes to find me and negotiate. If you are not here in thirty minutes, you will never see them again. And oh,”_

Distorted chuckles resonate from the recorder, amplifying Jaehyun’s rage.

_“I have one more secret you failed to discover.”_

The Garnet man turns up the volume.

 _“The shooting at Disneyland._ ”

As if knowing the faces everyone is making even without him being there physically, Yunho sardonically sighs and spills one more of his limitless brutality.

_“I orchestrated it. Too bad, we killed the wrong children.”_

The recording ends with a click and then the device is thrown to the ground, sliding and hitting Jaehyun’s shoe.

His seething gaze never leaves the men from Garnet.

“Before we forget, we have an offering.” The man with the scarred eye snaps his fingers. One of them opens a black bag and soon, Jennie’s decapitated head is thrown in the air, landing in Taeyong’s hands.

Her empty eye sockets are coated with dried blood, her hair matted like it was yanked too hard and her tongue is messily cut. From the state of it, it was snipped by a scissor.

Taeyong’s thumb caresses over her cheek as he mentally thanks Jennie for her service in the group before he flings the head behind, producing a loud thud as it hits the windowpane.

… _But if Jennie’s dead and the gremlins are with Yunho, where is Olivia?_

“Well,” the Garnet man slips on a glove and then in a blink of an eye, several guns are pointed at the Invictus members, whose agility matches theirs as guns point back to the members of Garnet. “We just need to kill every single one of you in thirty minutes.”

“Hold up!”

Someone suddenly interrupts the start of the fight. All of them look behind to see who the untimely intruder is.

Park Chanyeol, together with the men of Invictus brandishes their own weapons. Smirking, he cocks the gun. “Thinking of winning? Not so soon.”

While Chanyeol distracts the enemies, a dagger jabs through the throat of the scarred man, his mouth muffled as copious blood fills it. Taeyong indulges himself with a quick twist of the blade as if he’s carving out the man’s Adam’s apple before he gives a hard kick to the body, letting it drop to the floor.

The sound takes the enemies’ attention back to him, frozen by how quick and quiet Taeyong murdered one of them.

He twists his head to the right, hearing a pop in his bones. “Let’s get this started.”

Two men point their guns at him but before they get to pull the triggers, Yuta simultaneously fires through their skulls and kicking the incoming enemy from the side. Taeyong doesn’t have the time to thank the Japanese as he grabs an unsuspecting man by the head, mercilessly snapping the neck.

Addicting satisfaction surges through him at the sick sound of bones cracking.

Jaehyun knocks his gun down someone’s temple and knees the guy on the stomach, sending the enemy writhing in pain before a bullet is lodged between the man’s eyes, killing him. He’s not contented with it as he rains more on the man’s torso and screams his lungs out for the situation he has put the twins in, for being careless, for being an utter disappointment to the _Jaehyun_ he swore to become.

As though possessed by the devil himself, the sharpshooter bravely passes through the horde of punches, kicks and guns as he shoots at every single enemy his eyes land on. None dare to focus on him as they are engaged in their own fights, and that only gives him the freedom to be merciless.

Johnny gets shoved against the wall with an arm digging against his neck. His face reddens from the lack of air and seeing that the man in front of him is losing the strength in his arm, he slightly goes lack, pretending to have surrendered – only to deliver an uppercut to the enemy that stupidly let his guard down, giving Johnny the chance to grab his leg and twist it, and when the man loses his balance, Johnny pulls an explosive out of their strap against his body to clip it to the enemy.

They only have three seconds to flee before the blast. Fragments of the grenade fly through the air, hitting those who are too slow to get out of the way.

Quick to get over the explosion that created a mass of flesh in the room, coating some area with thick red, Taeyong tries to run out. A man successfully grabs him by the throat and slams him down the floor, straddling him with a gun pressed to the base of his neck. The knife thrower only stares back at the craze enemy whose eyes are emblazoned with the thirst to kill.

Unfortunately for the Garnet man, Taeyong cannot die. Not yet. Not in the hands of a nobody.

He grips the gun in a snap and points it upward and the shock causes the man to pull the trigger and shoot a comrade instead. While distracted, Taeyong takes advantage and steals the firearm to shoot the man’s throat five times until he creates one huge hole on it, only stopping when the head lolls to the side and is almost torn from the neck.

Face now covered in sprayed blood, Taeyong kicks the body off of him and scans the room as well as the hallway. Only a few Garnet men are left, painfully outnumbered by the remaining Invictus men standing. He cannot see wear Jaehyun is – the guy is probably busy going berserk in a different floor.

As no one is currently after him, he runs to the emergency stairs hoping to get out of the building fast and get to Yunho. He doesn’t know where Yunho is, but if they’re only given half an hour, a terribly short time they are awfully running out, they can’t be far from the headquarters.

He’s in the middle of the stairs when two men meet him halfway. They don’t have guns in their hands, but they’re huge enough to break his bones.

“Got you.”

Taeyong grunts as he runs back up, now tailed by the two enemies. He can hear more faint gunshots from the outside and if it’s still going on, then the other Invictus men are doing a decent job in preventing more of the bastards from getting in the building.

They shouldn’t have let the roaches past the gates in the first place, but he will slap their heads for that in another time because right now, he has two pests to lose.

“You really think you can have a piece of me?” He laughs, maniacally at that as he ends up in an empty room on the same floor. He turns around just as both of the enemies lunge for him, making him narrowly miss the attack. The adrenaline rush pumps the knife thrower’s heart an alarming rate per minute, but instead of considering the prospect of dying, it only gets invigorating.

He pulls out four knives and hurls two, hitting one of the men straight through the face. One impales the eyes, and one sticks right through the mouth. Spluttering as he struggles to take the knives out of his face, Taeyong deals with the other, blocking and dodging the attempted punches on his way. The man delivers quick swings of his arms yet each punch is blocked and given back with double the force. Since Taeyong’s stature is smaller compared to the opponent, his moves are quicker and his arm strength from all the training and combat gives hits harder than average.

When he thinks he finally one-ups the enemy, the latter sees an opening and goes for it, landing a hard punch square on Taeyong’s left cheek causing him to stagger and trip over the other man’s leg. He keeps the grip on the knives though, and when the Garnet man charges at him again, Taeyong swings his arm, planting the blades in the man’s stomach. He gathers all of his strength and drags the knives down, cutting up the man’s torso.

With an insane grin, his face still colored with metallic crimson, Taeyong opens up the man’s body and kicks the other hard enough for the bastard to hit the window – which shatters loudly from the man’s weight.

Then he’s taken by surprise when the guy actually manages to grab him by the foot, the harsh tug making him hit the ground face down before it pulls him out the window.

Taeyong, eyes wide as he failed to see it coming, falls out of that room five stories high aboveground.

Just when he thinks he’s done for, as his own life flashes right before his eyes during the fall, he luckily, yet painfully crashes on top of the container van storing the items from Invictus, his plummet partially secured by the huge body that dragged him down.

He grunts as the excruciating pain shoots up his spine. Shards of glass are still falling on him from the broken window, and when he looks up at the raining sky, the blood is wiped off of his face although more seep out of the cut on his forehead. Unfortunately, his head has thumped on the ridged roof of the van.

“Fucking…shit….”

When he cranes his neck to the right, he sees Jaehyun blow up an enemy’s head before the younger witnesses his pitiful state, instantly running to him.

His vision starts to blur.

Meanwhile back inside the building, Johnny and Yuta take turns in fending off the attackers. There are around seven of them against two, and Yuta is already running out of ammo.

“What the fuck, Johnny! Are these gremlins!? They multiply!” Yuta shouts as he hides behind a wall, checking one of his magazines. “Fuck! I have at least ten left! You got more?!”

From his hiding spot, Johnny comes out and gives the last of his bullet to one of the enemies, aiming at the stomach. “None! What do we do?!”

The Japanese gunman takes a few breaths, quick and shallow before eyeing the dark end of the hallway. There’s a path on the right leading to the room where some of the weapons are stored. He throws one of his guns to Johnny’s hiding spot, the object hitting his fellow squad member right on the head.

Johnny glowers at him and Yuta mouths his plan.

“We’ll run out,” he says quietly, hoping that Johnny has the talent to read lips. “Hide until they run past you. I will trap them in the storage room. When they are all in, drop a grenade.” Yuta gulps and peeks at the enemies lurking from their spot before looking back at his friend. “Trust me. This is going to work.”

If they have a better choice than surrendering, then it’s what Yuta suggested. It’s going to kill the enemies at once. They hold an eye contact for a moment as one of them mentally prepares for the execution of their poorly planned idea, while the other prays that if this doesn’t end well, there has to be at least someone to tell the others of their death.

Yuta hopes that they miss him when he’s gone.

“3, 2, 1.”

At the same time, they force their legs out of their hiding spots. Ducking their heads to avoid the shots, Johnny finds a room and disappears in it while Yuta runs straight to their target area. Luckily, it’s still unlocked.

“Johnny, there are so many guns here!” Yuta shouts so that the men would look for him in the room at end of the hall. While shouting, he’s already climbing up the air vent and closing it just as the men foolishly land in the trap.

Johnny takes the grenade out of its strap and runs to the room, unclipping it and letting it roll to the floor. One of the men sees him, and he smirks as he quickly locks the door from the outside.

Three seconds.

The blast shakes the floor with its intensity. There were a few grenades in the room the enemies were trapped and they were detonated one by one, a domino effect caused by the explosive Johnny set.

Since there’s only a three-second grace period, he doesn’t get to run far enough to be unscathed as the jolt of the explosions hurls him several feet across the floor. Metal splinters that flew from the bombing stick deep in his flesh and when he glances down himself, blood slowly soaks his shirt inch by inch. They sting a fucking a lot, but as seconds pass by while he struggles to get up, he begins to numb.

 _Is this it?_ He wonders as he falls once again and presses down on one of his open cuts to the stomach to slow the bleeding. Johnny stares up the ceiling, unmindful of the cement dust covering the entire hall.

“Ten…” The nurse’s face flashes before him and Johnny can feel his heart hurt more than his wounds do.

Is this really how it’s going to end for the two of them? Aren’t endings supposed to have at least a good bye?

He closes his eyes when he starts to get dizzy, and the last thing his senses pick up on before losing consciousness is the strong smell of burning flesh.

Yuta’s mind is addled. He felt more than one explosion. He dares to look behind him and the narrow space is slowly getting engulfed in flames from the blast. Heart thundering, he moves as fast as he can in what little space he is in and finds an opening. He punches the cover off and sees a chandelier chained near.

“Fuck it. A few broken bones are better than death.”

Without thinking twice, he slips out of the vent and hangs on to the chain of the chandelier. Due to his weight, the chain detaches from the ceiling and then he’s plummeting to the floor. A Garnet man, none the wiser of what’s happening above sees him a second too late, groaning as he cushions the Japanese’s fall.

“Oh, fuck.” Yuta curses as he scrambles to get up. “Sorry!” His eyes widen as he realizes who’s in front of him and since he dropped his last gun while running, he grabs the chain from the chandelier and evades a punch before coiling the manacle around the bald man’s neck.

Yuta keeps his grip, his veins popping out from the ruthlessness of his hold while the poor man slowly chokes to death. The struggling lasts for a minute before it stops as the man’s limbs fall and his dead weight brings the Japanese down with him.

“Serves you right, son of a bitch.”

He wipes his hands on his shirt, disgusted that he touched an enemy.

Screams resonate from the outside, slightly muffled by the worsening rain and intermittent claps of thunder. Yuta remembers Johnny and the urge to find the other propels him to leave his spot.

Hopefully, they are both alive to tell the others not to miss them.

Garnet is situated in the West suburbs of Paris where the green space is vast and abundant. The building stands far from the commune and the only establishment closest to it is an abandoned apartment complex. Hence, even with the gunshots and explosions, the noises are stifled by the time it reaches the nearest residence.

Sungjong’s back hits the wall of the building. He’s completely soaked from head to toe and the rain makes it hard for all of them to see. Blonde hair sticks to his face and obstructs his view every now and then which earns him a few hits and there are bruises already forming on his previously unblemished skin.

He wobbles as he pushes himself off the wall and picks up the knife he dropped earlier. Sure, he cannot throw it the way Ethan does as his expertise lie on a different field, but he can certainly inflict grievous injuries.

“Give it up now,” the man laughs darkly as he slowly prowls over to the Invictus member. “You think you can defeat Garnet? We’ve been on top of the game for a long time. Neither you, nor any of the other weaklings wishing to be in its place will take over.”

Sungjong pants and raises the knife. The action makes the Garnet man stop and laugh to ridicule him.

“What is that gonna do?” The man mocks him. “Scratch me?”

“Have you considered that maybe, just maybe, I don’t give a fuck?”

Surreptitiously looking over the enemy’s shoulder, Sungjong signals Yukhei with just a look and before the enemy aims a gun at him, Yukhei chops down the guy’s hand to disarm him and twists both of his hands behind.

Not wasting a second, Sungjong thrusts forward, burying the knife to the hilt in the man’s heart. It disappears in the man’s body countless times – _stab, pull out, stab, pull out, stab, stab, stab_ – until the torso is perforated with holes squirting so much blood.

Yukhei hears a scream and turns around dragging the body, slamming it against the incoming enemy before ramming the asshole with numerous shots to the head.

The lightning strikes brightly overhead, illuminating the litter of bodies around the building. It’s a strong blend of Invictus and Garnet blood, and it’s a shame to witness their fellow Invictus members’ demise.

On the other side of the building, Jaehyun attempts to stop Taeyong’s wound from bleeding. It’s a shallow cut caused by the fall. From his perspective, the knife thrower won’t bleed to death from it…probably. The older suffers worse from a fracture on the left wrist.

“I think a part of the building is burning.” Jaehyun says as smoke billows into the air. “Can you stand?” He asks from where they sit behind the container van, hidden in the dark.

Taeyong nods and swallows a pained grunt as he forces himself to stand. All of his limbs hurt but he can still fight, and they _need_ to, because he has lost count of the minutes in his head and pretty sure, the thirty minutes is up.

As though he can read his husband’s mind, Jaehyun remembers their limited time. “We have to go.”

Determined to bring the fight to an end on the winning side, the second kingpin saunters over damp concrete and heads back to the battleground like nothing happened, ready to continue the bloodbath.

His left wrist is throbbing in pain and so he cannot use it to throw the remaining knives he has. Taeyong completely relies on his right hand and hurls a dagger to a charging enemy, the blade deeply impaled in the jugular.

Jaehyun stays by his side with the scant bullets in his gun, killing more than what he already killed, hungry for revenge as his mind replays the little boy’s pleas.

He’s not angry at them for thinking he couldn’t replace their father, not at all. The twins probably already know the truth by now and they should’ve resented him. But he holds on to Haechan’s words, believing that they want to remain by his side even after knowing their real colors.

What he has to do next is confirm it. To be able to do that, he needs to see them again.

“Fucking hell!”

Taeyong screams, roughly pulling out a blade shallowly piercing his shoulder. Somebody has managed to attack him by throwing the weapon, but it’s not enough to render him immobile. The throw was too unskilled that only a centimeter of the blade sticks to his flesh.

Ablaze blue eyes dart over the attacker who becomes rigid for a moment, as Taeyong’s murderous gaze takes the wind out of his sail.

“Did you do it?” Low laughter rumbles from the psychopath’s mouth and his tongue darts out to catch the small drop of blood that rolled down from his wound. Taeyong looks at the knife, obviously not designed to kill, and cleans his own blood off of it with a lick all the while he holds the eye contact with the enemy. “How did you know I taste the sweetest out of everyone? You have a good eye.”

His smile drops as the man charges towards him, his injured arm shooting out to stop Jaehyun from fighting.

“Leave it up to me.”

Taeyong meets the guy head on with a roundhouse kick, dislocating the other’s jaw. He then thrusts the knife into the man’s neck while the latter’s down and hoists him up with his good arm alone, skewering the enemy.

“Mm, what’s that?” He mocks as the man splutters. Taeyong tugs the guy higher wanting to see how the life in his eyes dull but he gets splattered with more blood again and then the weight he’s carrying turns heavier.

“Eh, dead already?”

“Taeyong, we have to go! Come on, while the others are buying us more time.”

“What time? We’re late.” He looks past Jaehyun and whistles, flipping a finger at Yukhei. Somehow, the man understands what the whistle translates to and then he’s rushing to them to hand over his keys.

“Jaehyun, drive.” Taeyong tosses the keys to his husband and then they’re out of Garnet’s premises on a Red motorbike.

“I hope they bring it back in one-piece.” Yukhei’s countenance is nothing but forlorn as he watches the kingpins drive off. He shrugs and returns to Sungjong’s side at the same time that one of the few remaining Garnet men slumps to the ground, pinned on the back of his head by Chanyeol’s foot.

Seems like this one has been profusely battered to the head with a pipe.

“What’s this?” Crouching, he grabs the man’s jaw. “Man, you lost some teeth. Alright, when I count to three, you will cry to your sky daddy.” Yukhei points to the sky with a pout. “He’s sad because you killed our queen. Do you know who our queen is?” With his other hand, he yanks the man’s hair, forcing him to look up. “Do you?”

When Chanyeol ran up to them to say Jennie’s gone, Yukhei thought he would explode from anger, regret, and all the feelings he can’t name. Jennie had always been one of them even if she was loud, even if she didn’t know personal space, even if she was frequently provoking him.

How he wishes he told her she was a friend, despite the daily squabbles.

“Beg your sky daddy. Now!”

“T-there is…no god!”

“Then no one is gonna save you.”

Yukhei spits at the man’s face before slamming it to the concrete and stomping hard on it.

The rain falls harder, making the road more slippery yet it’s not a hindrance for the bike’s speed. Jaehyun turns the grip to go full throttle, shouting at Taeyong to hold onto him tighter.

At this time of the night, together with the fierce weather brought by an incoming storm, vehicles are sparse and people are locked inside of their houses.

His hair sticks to his face and even stubbornly curtains his sight. One wrong move and they’re going to topple and skid across the concrete with more injuries on top of those that they already have –which he cannot afford to happen right now as they desperately figure out where Yunho’s waiting.

What could Fort ask in exchange for the twins and Olivia? To take back everything the media said about turn themselves in? To surrender all of their assets to Garnet?

Or for their heads to be served on a platter?

Regardless of the condition, Jaehyun will brave through them just to save the lives that are not supposed to be tangled in this mess.

No matter what it takes.

Taeyong combs his hair back and spits out some rainwater before tapping Jaehyun on the shoulder and pointing ahead of them. “See that?” He grunts as he tightens his grip on the sharpshooter’s shirt with his fractured hand.

The sharpshooter follows where the older’s finger points towards and spots a speeding silver car. A bike runs just a little in front of it and when the driver looks back as though making sure they’re following, Jaehyun recognizes it to be Max.

“What the fuck! Yunho!” He screams, willing the bike to go faster.

What’s really going on in the man’s head?

“The thirty minute is over, Jaehyun. He’s not going to negotiate!”

“But where is he taking them?!”

“I don’t fucking know! Just drive!” Taeyong pats down Jaehyun’s body for a gun and finds one, slightly pulling away so he can check the bullets.

There isn’t much.

Jaehyun catches the weapon through his periphery and goes into hysterics. “Ethan! You cannot shoot the car! The kids are inside!”

“And?!” The knife thrower cocks it and aims. “They’re fucking short, I won’t hit them!”

“Shut the fuck up, Ethan! You’re not gonna shoot!”

Taeyong incredulously glowers at the younger, slapping his hair out of his eyes again. “Then what the fuck do you suggest we do?!”

“I don’t know?! Do not shoot! You might kill your sister as well!”

At the mention of his sister, Taeyong grits his teeth and stuffs the gun back into the holster. He hates being helpless, having nothing to do, and being on a standstill. A person like him has no regards for consequences when they let their minds give in to the temptation of impulse. He _aches_ to put a bullet in Jung Yunho’s head and the burn of the urge only intensifies as they lag behind the chase.

He has no idea where Yunho wants to lead them, where to lose them.

Jaehyun perks up when a rough, delirious laughter rings in the air.

“I have given you a chance! Half an hour!” Yunho’s voice is muffled by the sound of the harsh rain, the Invictus kingpins struggling to listen to it. “And now it’s gone! If I’m going down, then you are all going down with me!”

Yunho laughs as he closes the window of the vehicle and aggressively stomps on the gas, alarmingly driving over the speed limit.

Cries from the backseat fill the vehicle. Next to him, Olivia silently weeps as she watches through the side mirror the silhouette of her brother and his husband gradually shrinks behind. She clutches the seatbelt and looks at the pitiful twins who keep calling for both Taeyong and Jaehyun, utterly guilty that she cannot protect the children, before her gaze moves over to Jung Yunho, the man that stole her ability to talk, the physical manifestation of her many nightmares.

She has always known Ethan brings trouble wherever he goes and leaves a trail of bad luck in his wake. Does she regret staying with him? Yes. Does she blame him for involving these innocent children? Yes. Does she wish for him to disappear from her life permanently?

No.

While staying in the hideout with the twins and Jennie, she realized one thing: she wants to mend their broken relationship, wants to give him a chance. Their relationship before cannot be the same now.

But sitting next to a vile man, how is she going to do it?

Yunho looks at the rearview mirror and notices that the two are getting closer. He makes a sharp swerve evading a car at the intersection and narrowly misses a pedestrian crossing.

“I can do this all day, so stop being loud back there.” He intimidatingly warns the twins before taking out a gun and cocking it then rolling down the window to his side. “On a second thought, I don’t mind the both of you crying when I kill your goddamn fathers. Do you think you’re going to be one, huh?” Yunho bellows. “They both took what’s mine. I won’t let them give you the life I wasn’t given. ‘Cause that’s unfair, right? My father’s blood runs in every fiber of my being, but you two?”

He shakes his head before making a show of aiming at the twins.

“You are nothing but dirt.”

Olivia takes him by surprise when she reaches out to take the gun from him. Yunho spews out a string of profanities as they fight for the gun. He glares at the woman, twists his arm out of her hold before pressing the muzzle hard between her eyes.

“Should’ve killed you before.”

“What’s happening…”

Jaehyun mumbles watching the car they’re following zigzag.

Are the gears not working? Did the wirings malfunction? Did –

A gunshot shocks them both. The window to the passenger side cracks, some shards splattering.

_Who…?_

The twins are most likely in the backseat. Yunho is driving. Then…

Taeyong pulls out the gun and shoots at the wheel.

“Taeyong!”

The knife thrower is already too far gone in his uproarious mind. He doesn’t need to ask who took the brunt of that shot to know it’s his sister.

“Drive faster.”

Behind them, a car honks and Yuta’s head pokes out of the window to the driver’s seat. “Jaehyun!”

“Drive faster!” Taeyong shoots at one of the wheels again, smirking devilishly when he hits it and the car eventually loses control.

They’re nearing _Pont de Bir-Hakeim._ Taeyong tells Jaehyun to max up and though it’s dangerous because of the slippery road, they actually manage to be close enough to the car for the knife thrower to hastily leap off the bike, landing on the trunk.

Jaehyun cries out for his husband but he knows it’s futile. Taeyong is unstoppable now.

Due to the shock of Taeyong’s stunt, the sharpshooter loses his grip on the throttle and lags once again.

Yunho swears under his breath when he sees Taeyong land on the boot of the car.

The slightly unstable movement of it does little to deter the knife thrower from going over the roof and peering through the windshield, soulless eyes staring directly at the woman sitting in the passenger, dead with a hole between her eyes.

The car turns to the bridge. Yunho points the gun right at Taeyong as the twins scream and beg him not to shoot.

“Too late.”

Taeyong sees it and narrowly escapes the bullet piercing through the windshield. Fueled with the frustration and impatience to kill the man, Yunho loses control of the steering wheel and the car collides against the bridge’s railing.

With how fast he’s going, the car topples over the barrier and falls to the deep river of Seine with Taeyong’s body violently hitting the depths of the dark water.

Jaehyun’s heart stops.

He doesn’t know what came over him but he gets off the bike while it’s speeding - losing balance in the process, failing to see the bike collide against Max causing the man's own motorcycle to lose control and skid past the pedestrian road in the middle before getting ran over by a vehicle as he slides over the opposite lane.

Yuta steps on the brakes, yet he’s going too fast that its tires screech over the concrete and fails to completely stop just as Jaehyun's unsteady figure tries to go to the railing and then the kingpin hits the side of the car’s bumper, hurling him to one of the pillars supporting the metro over the bridge.

“Jaehyun!”

The Japanese gets out of the car and sprints towards the unconscious body, pressing a finger on Jaehyun’s throat to feel for a pulse.

Breathing.

“Fuck.” Yuta waves a car over, asking someone to call for an ambulance. He then drops to the ground as he cradles Jaehyun’s head to his lap, tears blurring his vision as he chants a prayer to the heavens not to take his friend yet. His hands shake, his head is blank.

Yuta doesn’t know what to do. He’s the only one that tailed the kingpins, worried about what Yunho would do. Right now, without the other squad members by his side, he can only cry for Jaehyun to hold on and for a miracle to happen that will save those that plunged into the river.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: Ending A


	3. Ending A

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Minor and Major Character Death
> 
> listen to this: [JYJ - In Heaven](https://youtu.be/yjMpc6hX2Pc)

It’s dark and freezing underwater. Taeyong’s whole body screams in protest yet he follows the dulling headlights of the car still submerged in the river, swimming to where it is. The current pushes him forward and it’s a struggle to find something to hold on to so he won’t get dragged away. Eventually, he manages to grip on the car’s front wheel before opening the door to the backseat. Since the water has already filled the vehicle in such a short span of time, it’s easier to pull it open.

Fort is moving out of his seat but the knife thrower ignores him to take the twins out of their seatbelts. It appears that they’re still conscious, holding their breaths. He’s about to pull them up to the surface for air when something penetrates his torso, twice. It feels like it was set on fire through the prickly temperature and without checking what it is, he knows bullets are lodged in his body.

Jung Yunho will make sure he’s dead by the end of the night.

Taeyong swims up to the surface with the twins in his arms, gasping loud when they finally come up for air. Haechan coughs violently, as well as Haera.

The river’s current isn’t that strong despite the continuous rain but when Taeyong’s arm hits the side of a boat that came for their rescue, he lets out a cry, not noticing how fast the volunteer rescuer takes the kids out of his hold.

Then he feels hands pulling him up.

His eyes widen when he realizes they are taking him out of the water. “No!” He struggles out of the grip, vaguely hearing the faint sound of an ambulance’s siren before snatching a flashlight from the boat and swimming back underwater.

In hopes of finding the submerged car, he forgets about his own safety. He forgets about the cut on his forehead, the fractured wrist, and the bullets in him. The coldness is paralyzing and he can already feel his body going numb, but Taeyong forces himself to swim back to where they fell.

The flow of water clashes with him, but not even once does he think of giving up and leaving without Olivia’s body even as his lungs start to burn. Taeyong raises the flashlight and finally sees a glimpse of the car, quickly swimming towards it.

He opens the door to Olivia’s side and attempts to pull her out but she won’t budge. Taeyong bites on the end of the flashlight and points it to where the seatbelt plug is before pressing its button.

Still, the seatbelt is stuck.

He slips a hand inside his shirt to take a knife out. Yet as if the heavens are finally punishing him for all of his sins, he comes up with none.

Taeyong looks up to the surface of the water. He is several meters deep down. The air in his lungs has long dissipated. His wound is bleeding copiously.

Even if he tries to swim up, he’s going to lose consciousness halfway through.

The knife thrower looks back at his sister as the demon in his head resurrects to whisper to him and hold him close with a reaper on his neck.

 _Jaehyun can go through more years without you, Taeyong. He has the twins to complete him. He doesn’t need you_.

 _But you just got his sister back and then in a snap she’s gone for the second time_.

_Jaehyun won’t mind it, believe me!_

If he stays with his sister for a while, Jaehyun won’t mind it, right?

 _Be selfish for the last time,_ the demon says. _Go on. Be with her for a bit…_

And Taeyong listens.

He listens as he goes over to the other side of the car, straps himself to the seat and holds his sister’s hand.

He listens to the demon for the last time and breathes out before closing his eyes, with Olivia’s cold hand held tight in his grip, and his blood mixing with the water.

_Jaehyun, will you wait for me?_

“Where’s Ten?”

Doyoung asks as soon as he walks inside of Jaehyun’s private room in the hospital. It’s much too quiet, save by the monotonous and repetitive beeping of a machine. He studies the monitor showing Jaehyun’s statistics, hoping that the numbers are a good sign of the kingpin quickly recovering.

“With Johnny. Sicheng wants to stay there.”

Sitting next to the still unconscious figure in bed is Yuta, hunched over as he pillows his head on both arms. It has been three days since Jaehyun got admitted and the latter is yet to wake up fully. Several times he has woken yet the anesthesia plays tricks in his mind and then he’s knocked out once again before he could register where he is.

During the three days, Yuta’s been with him, only going away when visitation hours are over. The Japanese chooses to be at the hospital than in a hotel room because with Jaehyun, his thoughts are focused on the kingpin but when he’s alone, his thoughts wander to places he would rather not visit.

They’ve been in the business for longer than he remembers, but the recent fight has left him scarred for life.

He doesn’t think he will ever get over this one.

Quietly observing the other, Doyoung stands behind another seat on the other side of the bed, his hands laid on the backrest for support because if he doesn’t lean on anything, he might just drop on the floor with all the energy sucked out of him for the past three days.

“I already consulted with the Unione Corse about the news to be released. They can’t do anything about the chase since it happened in public. The least they could do is reduce it to kidnapping. With Taeyong possessing a firearm based from the CCTV, the interrogation will lie on Jaehyun. They’re only waiting for him to recover. I’m not sure if Taeyong had a license for it, but we have to tell them he did.”

Yuta remains in his position, watching Jaehyun’s sleeping face tainted by several scratches. “…The bodies?”

“Disposed. The building had been cleaned right away.”

Silence screams loud for a moment and Doyoung begins to feel even more uneasy as he waits for nothing before Yuta sits up properly, the bags under his eyes prominent beneath the fluorescent light. “…Doyoung.” His gaze meets the other’s, both devoid of life. “I’m tired.”

The ticking of the clock rings.

Doyoung gulps and nods as he avoids the Japanese’s eyes for they only remind him of the tragedy they have undergone. “Then you should go back to the hotel. If you wish to get the stuff you left at the hideout, it’s also been cleaned as well. There are no traces of–”

“I want to stop.”

They hold a long eye contact and all the stress wears Doyoung down that he eventually lets the seat he’s leaning on catch his spent body.

“Alright...”

No one speaks again for a while as they both stare into space, reflecting from everything that happened. When it gets too much, when it begins to suffocate him like a snake set to kill, Doyoung lets out the breath he didn’t know he was holding.

“When I heard about it,” he starts to talk about what’s been bugging him because he cannot contain any longer, “I was…. I didn’t know what to feel. Even until now, I feel numb. I wanted to go and help, but what can I do? I’m not equipped to fight. I’d be useless.” Doyoung chuckles yet he sounds miserable. “Just a burden.”

He is the squad member with the most confidence yet it seems like his insecurity was just hidden underneath the will to be strong no matter what.

Yuta’s eyes snap at him, suddenly incensed. From the past three days, it’s the second emotion that has roused from him after agony. “Don’t say that. I’m glad you weren’t there or else we’d be burying one more body and that’s another grave to dig. Who do you think would want to bury you?” He shakes his head as he looks back at Jaehyun. “Not me. Not any of us.”

Their attention is thrown to the stirring in bed. Jaehyun lets out soft groans as his body aches from having been stuck lying down for days. Yuta and Doyoung rush to his sides, waiting for him to wake up.

“Jaehyun?”

The man struggles to open his eyes as the light harshly beats down on him. Doyoung quickly dims it before going back to his place, calling the other’s name softly to let him know they’re there.

Jaehyun finally manages to blink away the blur before his vision sharpens and he scans the surrounding, wincing as he attempts to get up. “Fuck.”

“Lie down,” Yuta gently pushes him down and Jaehyun follows without resistance. “You broke a rib.” He winces, remembering whose fault it is. “I’m really, really sorry about that.”

“What happened?” His groggily asks, voice raspy from not being used. “I can’t–”

Doyoung moves away to call a doctor.

“…I hit you with a car, remember?” Reminding the kingpin right away of the unpleasant events might not be good but they need to know if he needs to have his head checked again. The doctor tried to ask him a few times during the instances he woke up, but it was done in vain. “A fractured rib will take about six weeks to heal and you won’t be able to do much for some time.”

The kingpin winces as his head throbs. Listening to Yuta is arduous. He then recalls the events prior, specifically the car falling off the bridge and, in a snap, his mind clears and his body screams for him to get out of the hospital. “The twins, Yuta. Taeyong? Where are they?”

Yuta goes rigid and his throats closes up as the inevitable he fears finally comes. Jaehyun notices the change, frowning. “Take me to them–”

“…The kids are okay, Jaehyun. Physically okay. No major injuries, but they’re traumatized. They will have to stay for observation.”

Jaehyun blinks a few times, massaging his temple. It cannot be avoided. At least they’re in one piece. “What about Taeyong? God. That was horrible. When I saw it, I just jumped off the bike and,” he stops as he looks between Doyoung and Yuta whose faces seem to darken. “He’s okay too, right?”

Doyoung opens his mouth but whatever he wants to say is stopped by Jaehyun’s sudden chuckling.

“What am I even saying? Of course, he is. He got hit before. Falling into the river can’t be–”

“You’ve been unconscious for three days.” Yuta’s fists tighten. “The accident required search and rescue.”

“They didn’t see Fort?” Jaehyun sags and grips the sheets when Yuta shakes his head. “What about Olivia?”

“They saw her. After the search and rescue was dismissed and they had to do a search and retrieval instead. The bodies were found five hours ago.”

The kingpin lets out a sigh. _Did Taeyong already see her? He probably took it hard._

_Wait. Didn’t they say Fort is missing?_

The Japanese saves him from asking and takes something out from his pocket, placing it on Jaehyun’s palm.

There, in his hand is a ring.

Taeyong’s wedding ring.

Jaehyun is nonplussed for a few seconds, confused as to why he’s holding his husband’s wedding ring. And then as if realization hits him like a truck, he whips his head at the Japanese, eyes wide and glassy, lips trembling.

“Yuta, this is Taeyong’s wedding ring.” He looks at Doyoung and huffs. “What does this mean?”

He knows what it means, but he can’t believe it. He can never believe it. And he can never accept it.

How does one accept this kind of reality anyway?

Strength leaves Yuta at once as he falls to his seat again, tears running down his face. “Jaehyun. The bodies they found are Taeyong’s and Olivia’s. Taeyong is dead.” He gets choked up, hands trembling. “I’m sorry, Jaehyun. Johnny’s _gone_ too and h-he’s already been cremated separately ‘cause we can’t let them know how he died. Ten,” more tears spill out of Yuta’s tired eyes. “Ten has his ashes. Sicheng is here too. Jaehyun… Jaehyun, _let’s stop._ ”

Jaehyun stares at both of his friends, his own face now damp with salty tears. “That’s a sick joke, right?” He grips the ring and tries to look at it through his blurry sight. “That’s sick fucking joke?”

“Jaehyun, do you think we would joke about this? Johnny bled to death. Taeyong drowned. He was found in the car with his sister, holding her hand and they were brought here that way. Two bullets were taken out of him.” Doyoung says shakily.

“What do you fucking mean!” Jaehyun screams despite the ache all over his body. He thrashes in his bed, wanting to get out of the room. His torso protests with a sharp pain, making him grasp Yuta for support. “Taeyong is dead?! _Dead?!_ Stop fucking kidding me!”

“Jaehyun…” Yuta holds him down, asking him not to worsen his condition. “When you finally get out of bed…you can see his body. We requested the morgue to keep him until you see him for…for the last time.”

Is there an easy way to tell a friend the death of the person most important to him? Is there another way to get through this without all of them hurting?

Jaehyun pries his arm out of Yuta’s hold. “Yuta! No! Can’t you fucking understand?! I said no! He can’t die!”

The other two keeps their mouth shut and let the kingpin grieve because if they are already in the brink of breaking beyond repair, they cannot imagine how Jaehyun feels like.

It must be a hundred times worse. He lost a friend, he lost a lover.

The anguish is immeasurable.

A doctor finally arrives, pausing at the sight of the patient’s breakdown. Jaehyun ignores the intruder as he continues to spout anger, disbelief, regret, longing...all in the middle of mourning.

“Then why did you fucking keep me alive?! You shouldn’t have sent me here!”

Doyoung gives an apologetic look at the doctor before turning to Jaehyun. “I know you’re in shock. You’re broken. But…you have the twins. They need you.”

Jaehyun hears nothing. He lies back down, an arm over his eyes as he hides the way they keep pouring out tears no matter how much he wants to stop. The physical pain cannot even compare to what his wrangled heart is going through. It’s wringing, pulled and pounded.

If this is a dream then he wants to wake up and never go back to sleep so he doesn’t have to feel this way ever again.

He lies there, calling Taeyong’s name over and over as he remembers the nightmare he had back then.

Taeyong soaked, standing in a huge puddle of water with the two little bodies by his feet.

 _A premonition_. A premonition he shouldn’t have ignored. His subconscious was preparing him for _his_ world slipping out of his grip.

When he finishes the checkup, they request for a wheelchair for him as he cannot strain himself by walking right after being bedridden. The morgue, like any other hospitals, is located in the basement. They take the nearest staff elevator.

Doyoung wheels Jaehyun to the room where the bodies are kept. All three of them, including Yuta are asked to wear gloves.

“Um, c-can we see Ethan Lee?” Doyoung asks the diener who lets them and opens one of the freezers, rolling out a refrigerating table where a body is sealed in a translucent bag.

Jaehyun stiffens and grips the wheelchair’s armrest as he begins to get choked up once again, while Doyoung does his best rubbing the man’s shoulder in comfort.

But he knows that no matter what he does, he can’t alleviate the pure devastation his friend is in.

He then wheels Jaehyun closer to the corpse and when he realizes the kingpin isn’t going to move, he zips the bag open, instantly looking away so he won’t have to stare at Taeyong’s pale face.

Surprisingly, Jaehyun doesn’t get frantic. Instead, he remains immobile as he stares inscrutably at the corpse of his husband. Taeyong’s black hair is sprawled, and his face looks sunken.

How come?

How come that even though dead, he still remains to be the most beautiful man Jaehyun has ever seen?

Why does it look like he’s just sleeping? Cold, paralyzed, but sleeping.

Jaehyun places a hand on Taeyong’s head, caressing it. He’s freezing under his touch, unmoving. For a moment, Jaehyun wishes for him to open those eyes and let him see how blue and striking those irises are, how captivating they are when they look at him, how compelling they are as though they whisper to him. Jaehyun mouths his name, calling him, begging to stop this cruel pretense and come back into his arms.

But alas, Taeyong doesn’t wake up. His tattooed chest doesn’t move because he’s not breathing. His fingers do not twitch because his nerves are not working.

“Ethan…”

Jaehyun continues to caress the dead man’s head as his eyes well up and eventually overflow with anguish.

“Ethan. Come on, you missed breakfast. Why are you sleeping so much? Don’t you hate it? You sleep so lightly that even my breathing can wake you. Come on, Ethan. Let’s get out of bed. The twins won’t bother you. Don’t try to stab their hands with the fork, okay? It was fine, but I think they got scared. I’ll give you a candy if you eat the broccolis, I promise.” Jaehyun chuckles and blinks away the tears. “You’re worse than the gremlins, you know? Why do you dislike broccolis? They taste good.”

He clears his throat and takes the wedding ring out of his pocket, showing it to Taeyong – whose eyes are eternally close. “Yuta gave this to me. Did you forget to wear it after shower? I would get upset, but that happens to other people. They forget to wear their rings…”

Jaehyun is sobbing loudly now, gripping Taeyong’s hand.

“Please wake up so you can watch me slip it on your finger, just like when we got married.”

Yuta finally cannot take it anymore and walks out of the room before squatting down, muffling his own cries with both hands while Doyoung is rooted on his spot behind Jaehyun, his hand has long stopped providing futile comfort.

“Jaehyun, we haven’t told Léonie. I don’t know how she’s going to take the news of both her children dying.”

“Who’s dead?” Jaehyun looks up at him. “Is Olivia here as well? I will look at her later then you can tell their mother. But for now, I’m trying to wake Ethan because we have to eat. If he continues to only eat chocolates and candies, he’ll get diabetes.”

“Jaehyun,” Doyoung says the other’s name like a blend of a helpless whine and resignation. “Jaehyun, you’re the one who needs to wake up.”

“Why?”

“Taeyong is dead. He will never wake up.”

The kingpin’s hand stops caressing the corpse’s head and then he looks back at Taeyong, staring at him for a moment before quietly weeping and slipping the ring back in his pocket but he doesn’t let go.

“Okay.” He whispers weakly. “Okay.”

Jaehyun takes in Taeyong’s face for a full five minutes. _How painful is it not to be able to kiss him goodbye?_ The voice in his head asks, and the kingpin sighs in resignation before asking Doyoung to get him out of the room.

_Painful. Really painful, that I wouldn’t wish this pain upon my enemy._

_“Jung Yunho, alias Elliot De la Croix of the crime group Invictus is yet to be found. Authorities speculate that the criminal is either still on the loose or the dead body is washed far from the region. One of the two bodies retrieved in the submerged car is Ethan Lee, the owner of the casino formerly suspected of tax evasion and illegal detention allegations. The corpse was found next to another, which was a female’s. Relatives of the casino owner chose not to reveal the identity of the second body._

_As for the children that miraculously survived the accident, they are reportedly in shock and unfit to be interviewed._

_Regarding the relations between Jung Yunho and Ethan Lee, it was confirmed by the police that the latter was highly targeted by the criminal boss and due to the failure of framing up the businessman, Jung resorted to kidnapping two children who are also yet to be identified, as well as the aforementioned female._

_Based on a CCTV, Lee was seen firing at the vehicle, erecting suspicions of illegal possession of firearms yet it was quickly refuted as it turns out that Lee acquired a gun license. This information was disclosed by the spouse of the late casino owner, who is currently recovering from his own injuries caused by getting hit by a car at the peak of the chase._

_As the hunt for De la Croix is not yet done, the police will not close the case as there is still a chance that the criminal is alive._

_Due to these current events, the nation expresses their worry for their own safety._

_A very old but relevant question arises within the conversations among the people of France: Is the corruption so rich and blatant that endangering civilians might just happen on the daily?”_

Sicheng turns off the TV and checks his watch. “We need to go to the crematorium now if we don’t wanna be late for the ceremony.”

They head out of the house in Gambetta Avenue, aiding Jaehyun in getting in a van. The twins, quiet since they woke up in the hospital, flank the kingpin. Ten sits at the very back as he clutches Johnny’s urn.

After the cremation, they will go back to Bordeaux as Taeyong’s and Olivia’s remains will be kept in a modern house purchased under Jaehyun’s name. Léonie suffers an acute heart attack upon knowing the deaths of her children and so she cannot be flown to Paris for their cremation. Right now, she’s stable once again and is being ordered to remain in the hospital longer than intended. The urns will be taken to her when her health gets better as advised by the doctor, worried that she will suffer another heart attack.

Ten gazes out the window as soon as they get to the road. The urn is warm in his embrace as if telling him Johnny will not completely disappear. He’s here, in his arms, and Ten will keep the other as a part of his life until his last breath.

He has no more tears left to cry so he just watches the scenery outside, slowly changing from rows and rows of establishments to the tranquility of the cemetery. He then looks forward where Yuta drives and reminisces the days Johnny was their designated driver.

It’s an agonizing memory now, but he’s strong.

They arrive at the crematorium soon enough. The two coffins are brought in and placed on catafalques, and then a simple semi-religious ceremony is held to commemorate the siblings. At first, they were perturbed by the idea of having a ceremony before the cremation but Jaehyun remembered that his husband knew a lot of the bible, ironically, so Olivia could possibly be a believer. Hence, the service.

After the ceremony, the bodies are burned right away. Jaehyun, as well as the twins stay for the committal of the coffins to the cremators.

It takes two hours for both bodies to be burned, and then the bone fragments are powdered before they are transferred to the urns.

Olivia’s granite urn is honey in color with ornate designs resembling vines. Its shape is square, while Taeyong’s is the typical round one with a carved image of a Phoenix in front. Jaehyun personally chose the urns to be used.

During the whole process, he’s calm and collected. He initially thought he would break down but he surprises himself by staying composed, although not speaking a single word. There’s a drilling ache in his chest that he doesn’t ignore. He even acknowledges it wholeheartedly as it signifies his longing for his late husband. Maybe, he’s willing to hurt for the rest of his years. Taeyong turned him into a masochist. If it means remembering him every single day, then Jaehyun will subject himself to the torture of knowing the knife thrower is no longer in this world.

Then as he sits with the Invictus members in the chapel thinking of how their love bloomed in Père Lachaise, in the same place his love is cremated, he’s notified that the ashes are ready to be taken home.

Jaehyun, for the first time that day, smiles genuinely.

He cannot wait to have Taeyong with him again.

Moving doesn’t take a day as they have hired professional movers to grab every single thing from the penthouse. The Black Room men have been assigned to pack up the weapons so that the movers won’t have to.

When the sky darkens, everything is finally in the new house. Jaehyun sighs as he looks at the boxes and boxes of both of their belongings. It will be a hassle to put them in the right places as he is not yet familiar with the interior of the house; he bought it on a whim last year. They stayed there once and it wasn’t followed by another.

Luckily, the squad will be staying with him for a while before heading back to Korea. Ten insists that he needs a personal nurse to look after him since he has a few more weeks to heal properly, to which doesn’t deny. Before, he’s stubborn as a mule. But if he suddenly collapses in pain, who’s going to give first aid? Surely, the twins can’t play doctor with him. And Kim Jaejoong already swore to visit Léonie at Saint-Andre Hospital – he doesn’t need to do that, but the doctor reasons that it’s one way to continue expressing his gratitude towards Taeyong.

Jaehyun looks around for the perfect spot to place the urns. Should he put them in the living room or in the master’s bedroom? He wants to be with Taeyong wherever he goes, so he might as well bring it wherever he goes inside of the house.

He chuckles at the thought of carrying a vase in the shower.

“Jaehyun, I know it’s inappropriate to talk about this right now but…about Invictus –“

“I’m leaving.”

Doyoung doesn’t get surprised. No one among Ten, Sicheng and Yuta bat an eye. They have been expecting it. In fact, while the kingpin couldn’t be talked to, they have discussed about leaving the underground business.

Of course, it won’t be easy to drop the clients. They need an immediate solution if they want instant peace when they disappear off the face of the Mafia world.

That’s why Jaehyun has thought of a remedy that will make it easy for all of them.

Jaehyun carefully takes a seat on the sofa, mindful of his injury. It’s clean. No dust swirls in the air. The housekeeper must be cleaning regularly.

“Can we access some of Jung Yunho’s wealth?”

Doyoung nods. “A portion of it.”

Nodding slowly, the Invictus kingpin looks at each of them with finality in his eyes. “Give his possessions to the Corsican Mafia as a farewell memento. Invictus is registered in Flavio Ricci’s organization, and even if we helped each other in tackling the problem with Garnet, he might not let us go just like that. So all the weapons and products and money found in Garnet’s headquarters will be given to him. Our clients will be directed to the Corsican groups. That will help their organization flourish.”

“Should I contact them now?”

Jaehyun nods at Doyoung who immediately goes to work before looking at the twins. “Are you guys hungry?”

Haechan timidly nods, fiddling as Haera stares at her feet dangling over the edge of the sofa.

Smiling softly, Jaehyun pats their heads and glances at the squad members. “Who knows how to cook?”

Sicheng, Ten and Yuta exchange looks. The Thai nurse slips away with an excuse to find a room to put Johnny’s urn, and Sicheng pulls out his phone.

“Gaming.”

That leaves the Japanese gawking in disbelief at the two’s shamelessness. He turns to the twins with an embarrassed face, scratching his head. “My cooking is subpar, but that will do for tonight. As long as you fill your tummies with something, I guess.”

They watch Yuta scurry away to find the kitchen and Jaehyun winces as something drops to the floor with a clang, followed by the assigned cook’s _gomenasai!_

As Ten is locked inside a room, Sicheng busy with his game and Doyoung currently in a conference with the Corsican Mafia leader, Jaehyun is left to tend to the twins.

Since waking up from his three-day coma, he hasn’t had a decent conversation with them. The twins are now quiet as a mouse. Haechan has always been quiet, but Haera almost convinces everyone she’s gone mute as she only talks when she wants to.

And that can be counted in one hand.

The two refuse to cooperate with Jaehyun in attending therapies. Haechan reasons they’re fine but they are nowhere near it. Jaehyun has no idea what to do if they are unwilling to get over the trauma. Maybe, he will try to talk them everyday into seeing a professional until they realize they need it.

With nothing to say to the twins while waiting for Yuta to finish whatever he salvages from the fridge, Jaehyun picks up a small-sized box from the pile. Sicheng rushes to him, worried that his injury might worsen.

“I can carry this. It’s light.” Jaehyun bounces it in his arms, listening to the jostling of the contents. “I think these are just magazines.” After reassuring his friend, he goes to the master’s bedroom. He’s glad the house is a bungalow so he needs not to climb stairs.

He comes back to the living room to pick up Taeyong’s urn, murmuring an apology for forgetting to bring it with him right away.

There’s a shelf attached to the wall next to the bed and Jaehyun temporarily puts the urn there, planting a quick kiss on it before sitting in bed and going through the contents of the box. True to his assumption, there are only some books and magazines in there. While checking each item, he thinks about Red Phoenix and the company. Can he continue running both of it alone? What about Taeyong’s investment in Château Mouton Rothschild?

Maybe he should drop one of them. He also needs to take care of Taeyong’s accounts. Jaehyun mentally takes note of all the things he needs to do, promising to start working on them one by one when he completely heals.

As he gets to the bottom of the box, he sees a notebook. Opening it to the first page, Jaehyun realizes what it is.

Taeyong’s journal from the psychiatric facility.

Should he read it? It’s like a diary of the patients. Taeyong would hit his head if he dares to invade his privacy.

 _Tch. What privacy? Your husband never had it._ Jaehyun glances furtively at the urn as though getting caught snooping would put him in trouble before starting to read Taeyong’s entries.

His beloved’s messy handwriting amuses him. It looks like Taeyong just wrote for the sake of it. Only the knife thrower would instantly decode those weird scribbles in one second.

Some of them are neatly written, though. They talk about his complaints regarding the food, the noisy patients, the activities he was forced to participate in. One of them has Jaehyun’s brows raising.

 _Taeyong kissed his nurse to steal the keys?_ Jaehyun’s lower lip juts out. That’s unfair. Taeyong hated it when women breathed in the younger’s direction but the former actually kissed someone on the mouth? Jaehyun sends a playful glare to the granite box.

“When you visit me in my dreams, I will scold you.”

He pauses after that and then giggles at how stupid he must look. Talking to an urn? He must be crazy. But Jaehyun supposes he can talk to it like how others talk to their plants. They said the plants can feel their owner’s feelings when they’re being talked to.

_Will Taeyong hear me from hell if I talk to his ashes everyday?_

Not wanting to be dumber, he goes back to reading.

The more pages he turns, the deeper the entries get. Taeyong talked about his struggles at night, missing Jaehyun (he whispers an apology to the urn), and planning how to escape the facility. His distraction was a newfound friend called Mark who did nothing but follow him like a pup, draw portraits ( _the frames are in the other boxes, right?_ ) and try to steal his chocolates. Apparently, the guy was a kleptomaniac.

Jaehyun wonders if this Mark is still in the facility. He sincerely hopes Taeyong’s friend got better.

He doesn’t even notice he has reached the last page as he is greeted by a long entry.

**_“If you’re reading this Jaehyun, then you’re a fat ass dick. Your dick is fat is what I mean. My journal is private property. You wanna get sued? But how is that gonna stop you when I’m gone?”_ **

His heart constricts.

**_“I am writing this at 2 in the morning, dated November 27, 2020. Does this seem like a last note? Perhaps. Solitude and darkness can push you to do ridiculous things. Ha! As if I don’t do ridiculous shit already!_ **

**_Anyway, I plan to escape on Christmas because on Christmas, you deserve a gift and I am your gift. Surprisingly, I still know what day it is. There are no calendars here. I don’t know where they are._ **

**_After this, I don’t know if I’m going to write again. My previous entries already talked about whatever I could talk about in such a closed place. Everything is limited. From the rooms you can visit to the food you can eat. Considering my continuous chocolate supply, I guess I’m a little special, hehe._ **

**_Bitch._ **

**_No, I just wanted to cuss you out. You’re a bitch ;p_ **

**_Moving on…_ **

**_My emotions are limited like we all already know. So the idea of missing the two friends I made here is weird. Beyond weird. I’m not sure if ‘missing’ is the word but I can see myself remembering them positively. I’m pretty sure I’ll leave a deeper impression with how I’ll escape this shithole. Tell me when I forget. They will call you to report what happens."_ **

Oh, Jaehyun remembers exactly how they met again that Christmas day. He almost had a heart attack when Taeyong’s head popped out from the backseat. The man mischievously disturbed his driving just to stop Jaehyun from sending him back to the facility.

_Can you please appear right before me again, Taeyong? I promise, this time I won’t get scared._

**_“So why are you reading this? Where did I go? Am I sleeping? Am I outside hunting people? Or am I simply not around any longer? Surely, you won’t dare touch my journal if I’m there. I kind of want to know your thoughts when reading this._ **

**_But if I’m totally gone, turned into dust in the wind, that means it’s over. Hell is over. The game is over._ **

**_I am over._ **

**_The very reason that danger follows you is because of me, right? Because you chose to deal with me. Maybe if you didn’t bother with me, you wouldn’t be doing this._ **

**_Because I started the fire to provoke you, you are now at this point in your life._ **

**_I killed the bastard not because he called my mother what he is._ **

**_I killed him because you didn’t want me to. And in what better way could I assert my power over you if not showing you that you cannot control me?_ **

**_And all that will unravel in the future is because you chose to be with me._ **

**_Pray tell, Jaehyun. Do you regret it? Do you regret this life?_ **

**_Do you regret me?_ **

**_I will never know your answer._ **

**_In this entry, I want to end it with a serious note. When I’m gone and things are better, easier for you as a kingpin, it means hell ended. No more to tail you, I swear that.”_ **

_But Taeyong, you’re wrong. Jung Yunho is still missing. How I wish I could tell you right now how wrong you are._

**_“I probably have already given you everything I could.”_ **

_You are my everything, first and foremost. But you’re gone. You gave me everything and took them away in a snap. How cruel of you._

****

**_“Hell began with me and it will conclude with me._ **

**_I am the ground zero, Jaehyun. The epicenter. As the plague finishes, paradise will come. The very goal that you set for yourself – standing on the precipice of success. If not, I must have miscalculated. Should I apologize? I better not. It will do nothing._ **

**_You cannot forgive a ghost._ **

**_Yet even though I’m gone, tattoo it in your mind and heart that the thrill I made you experience is incomparable. So remember that without me, you are less. Ain’t I the best?_ **

**_The best you’ve ever had._ **

**_The pen is running out of ink. I will stop now. My head hurts._ **

**_When I get out of here, I want to see you. I ache to see you._ **

**_I’ll go now, dimple boy._ **

**_‘Til we meet again.”_ **

**- _Taeyong Lee_**

A tear drops on Taeyong’s signature, smearing the ink. Jaehyun looks at the urn with angry tears in his eyes before furiously throwing the journal against the wall and marching over to the shelf, slamming one of his hands next to it. His injury pulsates.

“Easy?! Does it look easy?! Taeyong! Lee Taeyong! Fucking tell me if it looks fucking easy! How fucking selfish of you!”

Jaehyun screams at the phoenix looking back at him with its sharp eyes, vaguely hearing the running footsteps of the Invictus members to the room.

“You gave me everything, you said?! You did! You did! But you took them away!” The kingpin’s torso begins to hurt yet he dismisses it. Fuck healing. _He wants to die._ “What do you want me to do now, huh?! Continue on with my life as if nothing happened?! As if you didn’t happen?! As if we didn’t happen?!”

Doyoung quickly tugs the twins away from the heartbreaking scene and stays with them in one of the rooms far away from where Jaehyun is.

“Fuck you! Fuck you, you selfish asshole! I shouldn’t have loved you! I shouldn’t have married you! You fucking dare to leave me like this?! We haven’t even reached a year being married! You come and go whenever you want!? You cannot do that!” Jaehyun cries, broken and miserable.

He doesn’t want to move on. He wants to hurt and hurt and hurt until Taeyong comes back from the dead and fight him for being stubborn.

“What! Why did you die! Why did you stay underwater! You could’ve lived! Taeyong, do I not mean anything to you? How is it so easy for you to leave me? Do you no longer need me, Taeyong? Come on,” Jaehyun continues to bawl his eyes out, spilling all that he has kept for days. “Taeyong, do you not love me?”

His legs give out under him and Jaehyun slides down, quickly caught by Sicheng.

“Taeyong, do you not love me? You said you are invested in me, right? Did I do anything wrong? Did I disappoint you? Why did you leave me? Do you not want me anymore? Taeyong,” Jaehyun cries his heart out in Sicheng’s arms, gripping the other’s sleeve while he stares up at his husband’s urn. “Taeyong, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I couldn’t save you. Please come back to me, okay? Let’s break free from our chains together. Come on, this is not funny anymore, Taeyong. I won’t force you to be nice to the gremlins, please. I promise.”

Yuta’s gaze lowers to the ground. He picks up on the soft sniffles from Ten behind him, and he turns in his heel to hug the Thai tightly.

God knows how much Ten is suffering from losing Johnny and watching their friend go through the same torment.

“How can I go through each day without you next to me, Yong? Who’s going to annoy me? Who’s going to console me with candies? Who’s going to…who’s going to complete me, Taeyong? I’m less, I’m less without you. You’re right. So please come back to me.” Jaehyun gradually weakens in Sicheng’s hold, still staring at the eyes of the phoenix.

From his view, it looks like the mythical creature is glowering at him with blazing eyes.

He can almost see Taeyong stare right back at him.

The grieving man reaches out, trying to hold the phantom hand only he can see.

“Please come back to me, Ethan…”

Red Phoenix. A mythical creature that gets reborn after every death. The ultimate symbol of strength and resumption. It dies, yet it lives again. Time after time. It is born from its fire, from the ashes of its past, from the blazing ball of the sun.

Lee Taeyong is a phoenix. Was once thought to be a myth. Evaded death repeatedly. Came back stronger than before, every single time.

Jaehyun’s body switches off, his hand falling limp to his side as he collapses from emotional exhaustion.

His body may be asleep, but his mind is not. It calls for him, a whispering phantasm.

_I am not dead, Jaehyun. I’m with you. I will be with you for eternity._

_I am not gone._

_I’m always here._

_You will see._

_Someday, you will see._

Flavio Ricci’s acquisition of Garnet’s weapons, products and stored cash is relatively easy. All that was collected from the headquarters in Paris was sent to the island by chopper, and the clients from the joint business are now catered by the groups under Corsican Mafia. The rest of the French transactions are halted and compensated while the ongoing Korean operations will be finished one at a time.

Then there will be no more renewals.

Invictus will end its reign, never to be seen again.

Despite that, the leader of the Corsican Mafia organization will offer aid to the Invictus members should they need it.

Jaehyun will keep Red Phoenix afloat. Regarding the others, he still hasn’t decided.

It has only been three weeks. Three weeks since he woke up to the news of losing a friend and a husband. Three weeks since his heart begins to pump tar instead of blood. Three weeks since his soul died.

Three weeks since he started feeling nothing but agony.

But Jaehyun thinks he’s doing well if waking up to spend the days with the twins and help them get over the accident is anything to go by.

He’s hurting and it’s okay. The squad is with him and they are broken too, but broken pieces put together will become whole. He hopes that they will be able to hide the cracks one day that when someone looks at them, the scars will not be seen.

Looking back at all the sins they committed, Jaehyun supposes that maybe, Taeyong’s disappearance is the reparation of it all. Taeyong’s death paid for the crimes they did and even though it’s scalding within hellfire, Jaehyun wishes that his husband’s enjoying his stay there.

“Why are you here?”

Jaejoong looks up from the medical book he’s reading and gives the blonde man a once over before closing his book. “I’ve been here every other day. This is the first time I’ve seen you visit.”

Sungjong takes the vacant seat next to the doctor. “I guess I’m just curious why a member of Garnet is watching over my kingpin’s family.”

“It’s a promise I made. They let you in?”

“They did. I think Jaehyun added the names of the Black Room squad in the visitors list. But even if my name wasn’t there, I’d find a way to come here.” The blonde man gazes at the face of Lee Taeyong’s mother, noting how the old lady looks distraught even in her sleep. “There was nothing to do. I don’t know if I want to take up a job in the casino. Yukhei, if you know him, wants to take over at the bar when it reopens. Chanyeol still hasn’t showed up.” Sungjong brushes a hand through his hair and sighs. “So I figured I’d pay her a visit. We met her once and she’s kind.”

“Her health continues to deteriorate. She hasn’t seen the urns yet. I think it will be detrimental.”

“I don’t know how grief affects the ill. But you’re a doctor so I’ll believe you. Why weren’t you at the cremation?”

Holding a conversation with a stranger proves to be more than awkward for Sungjong. Throughout his service in Invictus, the times he met the other members outside of the casino can be counted in both hands. As Kim Jaejoong is from Garnet, he saw him only once at a gathering and they didn’t even talk.

There was no reason for them to.

Now, they do.

He’s not sure whether it’s a good or a bad thing.

Jaejoong leans forward, elbows on knees. “I was in a really bad place.”

“Oh.” Sungjong says just to have something to say to that. He has no idea what could possibly put the so-called Diamond-rank in a bad mood, but it sure couldn’t be because of Garnet’s demise.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense.

They don’t really need to talk. Sungjong is there to have something to do albeit sitting down isn’t really much. Maybe he’ll stay for an hour and then he’ll go back to his apartment. Myungsoo isn’t helping either. When Sungjong told him about Ethan’s death, the other man froze for a moment before asking not to be bothered as he holed himself in a room.

Sungjong feels an odd pang at the thought of Myungsoo not moving on from his burdensome infatuation.

He’s about to start counting the faint beeping from the monitor just to get rid of the awkward atmosphere in the room when it suddenly goes flat.

_Asystole._

Jaejoong shoots out of his seat to press the emergency button. He watches the monitor as it fails to detect any electrical activity of the heart muscle. It takes the nurses a few seconds to come and attend to Léonie while he and Sungjong, who’s in a state of shock, gets told to wait outside of the room.

“Is she dying?”

“Pulmonary Embolism can cause cardiac arrest.” Jaejoong pulls out his phone to contact Jaehyun, his heart running a mile per second as he watches Léonie get defibrillated. “Can’t be too sure if she’s going to survive. Why is Jaehyun not answering?”

Sungjong looks at him, anxious. “Can’t you call someone else?”

“I only have his and Taeyong’s numbers.”

“That won’t work. You have to go there now. You know where Jaehyun lives, right?”

Jaejoong curses as the automated voice tells him to leave a voicemail instead. “I have the address. Stay here. Whatever happens, they’ll have to talk to you about it.”

Sungjong can only bite back an unnecessary question as Jaejoong runs out of the hospital. He looks at the situation inside the room once again, just in time as Léonie’s pulseless body jolt from shock.

“Are you sure we can reopen Red Phoenix next week?” Yuta asks while putting his shoes on. “You gotta hold a meeting before we do that.”

Jaehyun purses his lips. “I know. That’s why you and Ten should head there to check whether it’s still intact. We don’t know; Yunho might have done something to it last minute.”

“Alright. We’ll come back as soon as possible. What are you going to have for lunch?” The Japanese smirks, brushing his knuckles on his shirt and blowing at them. “I can be a chef, right?”

Shaking his head, Jaehyun carefully gets off of the couch and follows Yuta out of the house. Ten is already waiting inside the van and Doyoung is currently in the middle of what appears to be a deep conversation with the twins by the small fountain in the middle of the lawn.

When the van drives away, Jaehyun approaches Doyoung and taps his shoulder, whispering when the latter gets up.

“You know how to cook what we had yesterday?”

Doyoung frowns at him. “That’s a Japanese cuisine. I am not Japanese and the only Japanese person here just drove away.”

“Well,” Jaehyun rubs his nape with a small, shy smile. “Don’t tell Yuta but it was good.”

“Okay. Should I wake Winwin now? So he can be a little useful.”

“No. Let him sleep. His games kept him up all night.” Jaehyun pats his stomach. “I’m hungry.”

Doyoung presses his lips firmly to suppress a laugh before shrugging and telling the kids he’s gonna be busy, before disappearing inside the house.

Left with the twins, Jaehyun sits down the grass with them holding his side, wincing a little. He looks between them as they suddenly become quiet around him like the previous days.

“Haechan.”

The boy stops picking grasses to look at him. Between Haera and him, he was the more comfortable one with Jaehyun. Now though, both of them are too quiet when he’s within close proximity.

Jaehyun is prepared for this; he has been since last night. After his umpteenth breakdown when he found Taeyong’s journal, he realized he can’t keep crying. He can hurt quietly, but crying will not do anyone good, especially the twins. They can hear him, they can see him. And if he wants them to move on, he has to show them a good example.

“I don’t know if we can talk about this now, but the right time might never come so I might as well give it a shot. I’m sorry.”

Haera looks up from picking something from her finger.

“I’m sorry, because…” He takes a deep breath, exhaling slowly to calm down. “Because I kept a secret from you. Your father died. Taeyong…”

Jaehyun pauses and gazes at the fountain. Everytime he says that name out loud, his eyes just automatically well up. He has already cried so many times in front of the children and he wants to try if he can be unaffected for a change, yet it’s already failing.

Taking a few more deep breaths, his eyes finally stop watering. Jaehyun blinks away the tears and bravely faces the twins. “Taeyong killed him. There’s no other way to say it. You know what kind of people we are. I’m…I’m apologizing in his stead. If you guys want to…want to find a new home because you can’t stay with a murderer’s apprentice, then I will understand. If you decide to report, I will also understand.”

He can’t imagine being left once again. Taeyong’s departure was so sudden that it ruined him beyond mending. But if the twins really leave, at least he’s prepared.

Haera wraps her arms around her knees, gazing at him. “If he’s unapologetic, why should you say sorry for him?”

Her question makes Jaehyun and Haechan look at her with surprise.

“Taeyong doesn’t regret it. And I don’t hate it.”

“…Why not?”

“Why should I hate the person who saved us from abuse?”

Jaehyun reels in shock, eyes wide. “What do you mean?”

Haera’s brows furrow as she lowers her head. Before Jaehyun knows it, tears are already falling to her arms.

“Papa kept hitting us and calling us mean things. He would leave and not come back for a day or two, and we would be so hungry. But even when he came back, the food wouldn’t be enough. He kept us locked inside the house, too.”

Jaehyun remembers Haechan telling him about not having friends.

“We went here because our mama was working here. But papa said she has a new family now. After that, he hated us.”

The little girl angrily wipes her tears away. “Taeyong said there is neither good nor bad. That things are only called good or bad because people hate being different, so they sealed the world in two boxes.” She is sobbing now while recounting her unfriendly interactions with the departed. “How can I hate him when he stood up for me when that rude man told me rude things? He was the only person that wasn’t afraid of bad people.”

She then looks at Jaehyun, cheeks damp with tears.

“I don’t think he’s bad. Or good. I think he’s great.”

It’s too late to stop a long tear from rolling down his face. Jaehyun wipes it quickly and chuckles as Haechan nods, sitting next to him.

“He was scary but…but he would scare the bad guys away. Jaehyun?”

“…Yes?”

Haechan juts out his lower lip. “Can we call you dad?”

“How touching.”

Jaehyun freezes. His breath hitches, while the twins hold each other in terror. They barely let out a sound, remembering how they were reprimanded for being too loud.

He holds a finger against his lips, hushing the twins before carefully getting up and turning to face the damned paragon of atrocity.

Jung Yunho stands before him with all limbs intact, wearing an abhorrent smile.

“You’re alive. How did you find us? You’re wanted by the police.”

Yunho shrugs, glancing momentarily at the house. “You know, even if you tried to take everything from me, I still made some friends in our field of work. They are not swayed by the fear Unione Corse is instilling. Besides, when I’m done here, no one is going to rat me out.”

Jaehyun side-eyes the house. Doyoung must be busy. He also left his phone in his room so he cannot do a speed dial for emergency.

He’s empty-handed. He’s injured. In a snap, Yunho can massacre them in cold blood.

“Invictus will stop operating soon, Yunho. There’s nothing here that you can stop.”

“Are you sure about that? I’m not here to kill you, Jaehyun.”

Yet hypocritically, he pulls out a gun, cocking it. Yunho aims at Jaehyun before quickly pointing at the twins.

Right that second, Doyoung walks out. Jaehyun gestures for him not to do anything.

“You were the one who told me that children shouldn’t be involved with us.”

“You’re right. Unless it’s beneficial to all parties, I said.”

Jaehyun fumes. He cannot, for the life of him, believe the words coming out of Jung Yunho’s mouth. “How am I going to benefit from that? Have you really gone mad?!”

Yunho scoffs smugly, shaking his head. “What makes you think you are included in ‘all parties’? Invictus is dying. I can kill these children without considering you.”

Doyoung notices a movement from the pillar at the driveway. His eyes widen at what he sees but he keeps his mouth shut as his heart catapults to his throat.

Unbeknownst to him, Jaehyun has also noticed it. Only Yunho has no idea of the _trouble_ behind him as he is deafened and blinded by his own insanity.

“You’re crazy.”

“I know.”

“You’re crazy to think you can stop me.” Jaehyun smirks. “Good bye, Yunho.”

The Garnet kingpin doesn’t get the chance to question him as he’s suddenly tackled to the ground from behind, accidentally pulling the trigger and shooting the fountain. His face hits the concrete, nose broken from the impact of being roughly slammed. He quickly pushes himself up, only to find his gun in somebody else’s hold.

Jaejoong takes a brave step forward, the muzzle of the gun a feet away from Yunho. “Move and I will burst your skull.”

Yunho looks at him with stunned amusement, blood gushing out of his nose and busted lip. “What is this? You cannot do that, Jaejoong. Taeyong is not here to tell you to kill me. You cannot do anything without your lord. He’s dead.”

“Really? I dare you.”

Vexed, Yunho makes a grab at the gun but Jaejoong is quicker, shooting down his leg in a heartbeat.

He screams as he falls, clutching his bleeding leg.

Jaejoong unloads the magazine above Yunho’s head so that the bullets drops right on his face.

“The police are on their way. Don’t worry, I shot you where it you won’t bleed to death quickly.” He throws the disintegrated weapon at the fallen kingpin before walking over to Jaehyun. I’ve been calling you! Léonie had a cardiac arrest.”

“What?!” Jaehyun exclaims, torn between looking at the still crying out Yunho and absorbing what the doctor just said.

“They were reviving her when I left. I only know your new number and Taeyong’s. There was no one else for me to call.”

“I… The cops are on the way, you said. I need to–”

“Go on.” Jaejoong walks back to Yunho, towering over his pathetic state. “I’m sure that even if you’re not here to watch him get cuffed, Taeyong will be proud of you.” He then looks back at Jaehyun with the ghost of a smirk. “Tell him it’s finished.”

It is finished.

It is finally, finally over.

Jaehyun looks at Yunho as he holds the twins close.

For the first time since his beloved’s death, his heart soars.

**EPILOGUE**

Working at a convenience store is not the best job out there. Honestly, there are much better choices. But for someone who doesn’t even have a high school diploma, there are no rights to be choosy.

Really.

What’s worse than being a part-time cashier at a 24/7 convenience store is the broken shift. It ends literally at 2 in the morning so there isn’t a single soul outside on the dark way home. Taxis are available, but the dangers of being kidnapped are always a reminder from France Today.

After all, once is enough and two is too much.

Luckily, work isn’t far away from home. Walking will only take about an hour.

_Why did I fucking choose to work there, out of all other stores anyway?_

_Oh right. That’s the only one accepting part-time._

Working dayshift could be helped, but a person who functions properly at night will not willingly work during the day.

Breakfast means 4 in the afternoon, dinner means during the wee hours of the night.

_Fuck my fucking body. And brain._

Her mental debate is halted when a series of footsteps echo from a fair distance behind.

She doesn’t stop walking, but she knows what it is.

Bordeaux may be beautiful during the day, but when the nighttime comes, it’s when the snakes crawl out of their lair.

Her speed doesn’t change. She walks how she usually does. The footsteps grow nearer, louder.

The sound of gloves being snapped on is loud amidst the dead silence of the night.

And when she feels a hand predictably grab her shoulder, she whips around and punches the face of the attacker not once, not twice, and she completely loses count of it as she kicks the other at the stomach.

The men are not discouraged despite targeting a skilled woman. Instead, their sick grins only mean they’re _excited._

She blows her bangs out of her eyes and shakes her hands, ready for a fight.

“I can do this all night, you know.”

Simultaneously, the men charge at her but she quickly dodges them, showcasing her years of agility training as she kicks one of them on the jaw and turning to seize the other’s arm, painfully twisting it to a dangerous angle. The man cries out and she lets go, only to grab him by the neck and _snap_ it.

The sound of it cracking followed by the limp body dropping to the floor scares the remaining attacker.

“Alright. One down, one to go.” She beckons him, smirking. “Come to me, darling.”

The man starts to run away.

But she cannot let that happen. Because if he manages to report her for murder, then she’s gonna get in trouble, right?

Her father isn’t actually keen on the idea of bailing his children out of jail.

“Well, you leave me no choice.”

She propels forward and pulls something out of her sling bag. It glints beneath the lamppost she passes by before it cuts through the air and pierces the man’s throat.

The man grasps his neck trying to stops the bleeding but blood gushes out pretty fast. He falls to his knees then and she yanks his head back before pushing the blade further, sending her attacker to his end.

When the man’s body drops to the ground, she takes the knife out and puts it back to her bag.

“Phew,” whistling for her victory, she gives one last kick to the guy’s stomach before continuing on her way, seemingly in a very good mood.

She lights a cigarette stick pinched by her still bloodied gloved hand and quickly inhales a lungful of it to help with the adrenaline.

“That’s what you get when you mess with Tanya.”

The gloves are already disposed in the bin near their house so when she steps inside and is greeted by her stern father, the evidence is long gone.

“Uh, hey? Why are you still up?”

“You took longer to get home, Haera.” Jaehyun states. “What kept you?”

“Me? Overtime.” She smiles sweetly like she didn’t just kill two men singlehandedly and gives her father a hug. “Don’t tell me you and Haechan both waited.”

“He’s going to scold you. Go to his room.

“Why should I? I’m not ten!”

Jaehyun shakes his head and breaks the hug. “You are 20 and you will go to your brother’s room to get the scolding of your life because I will not do it anymore. I’m getting gray hair because of you.”

Haera rolls her eyes before walking past Jaehyun.

“Wait a second,” Jaehyun stops her from walking away, eyebrow raised. “Why do you smell like cigarette?”

“Uh,” she blanches for a moment before throwing up a peace sign as if that could get her father out of her hair. “Overtime!” Then she sprints to her room, locking it.

Jaehyun sighs fondly and closes the front door, double checking its lock before going to his own room. But before he gets in, his eyes drift over to Haera’s door, and he remembers.

He remembers _him._

Jaehyun clasps the ring dangling from his necklace.

_Taeyong, you’re right. You never left._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How y'all doin'


	4. Ending B

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Minor Character Death and Graphic Gore
> 
> Some parts of this will be similar with Ending A but there are details that will indicate why it is different. So you still have to read the whole thing.

It’s dark and freezing underwater. Taeyong’s whole body screams in protest yet he follows the dulling headlights of the car still submerged in the river, swimming to where it is. The current pushes him forward and it’s a struggle to find something to hold on to so he won’t get dragged away. Eventually, he manages to grip on the car’s front wheel before opening the door to the backseat. Since the water has already filled the vehicle in such a short span of time, it’s easier to pull it open.

Fort is moving out of his seat to escape but the knife thrower ignores him to take the twins out of their seatbelts. It appears that they’re still conscious, holding their breaths.

Taeyong swims up to the surface with the twins in his arms, gasping loud when they finally come up for air. Haechan coughs violently, as well as Haera.

The river’s current isn’t that strong despite the continuous rain but when Taeyong’s arm hits the side of a boat that came for their rescue, he lets out a cry, not noticing how fast the volunteer rescuer takes the kids out of his hold.

Then he feels hands pulling him up.

His eyes widen when he realizes they are taking him out of the water. “No!” He struggles out of the grip, vaguely hearing the faint sound of an ambulance’s siren before snatching a flashlight from the boat and swimming back underwater.

In hopes of finding the submerged car, he forgets about his own safety. He forgets about the cut on his forehead and the fractured wrist. The coldness is paralyzing and he can already feel his body going numb, but Taeyong forces himself to swim back to where they fell.

The flow of water clashes with him, but not even once does he think of giving up and leaving without Olivia’s body even as his lungs start to burn. Taeyong raises the flashlight and finally sees a glimpse of the car, quickly swimming towards it.

He opens the door to Olivia’s side and attempts to pull her out but she won’t budge. Taeyong bites on the end of the flashlight and points it to where the seatbelt plug is before pressing its button.

Still, the seatbelt is stuck.

He slips a hand inside his shirt to take a knife out. Yet as if the heavens are finally punishing him for all of his sins, he comes up with none.

The knife thrower looks at his sister as the demon in his head resurrects to whisper to him what might be one of the cruelest things to do, even for a psychopath like him.

 _Be selfish for the last time,_ the demon says.

Taeyong thinks of Jaehyun. He’s probably with the twins now. He probably won’t mind not having a husband for a while, right?

The demon eggs him on.

And Taeyong listens.

He listens as he takes the flashlight out of his mouth and leans in to plant a kiss on Olivia’s head as a thank you for being with him again, as a final goodbye, and as a promise to keep her in his memories forever, before swimming away to finish the war once and for all.

_Jaehyun, soon, I can finally say it’s ‘game over.’_

“Where’s Ten?”

Doyoung asks as soon as he walks inside of Jaehyun’s private room in the hospital. It’s much too quiet, save by the monotonous and repetitive beeping of a machine. He studies the monitor showing Jaehyun’s statistics, hoping that the numbers are a good sign of the kingpin quickly recovering.

“With Johnny. Sicheng wants to stay there.”

Sitting next to the still unconscious figure in bed is Yuta, hunched over as he pillows his head on both arms. It has been three days since Jaehyun got admitted and the latter is yet to wake up fully. Several times he has woken yet the anesthesia plays tricks in his mind and then he’s knocked out once again before he could register where he is.

During the three days, Yuta’s been with him, only going away when visitation hours are over. The Japanese chooses to be at the hospital than in a hotel room because with Jaehyun, his thoughts are focused on the kingpin but when he’s alone, his thoughts wander to places he would rather not visit.

They’ve been in the business for longer than he remembers, but the recent fight has left him scarred for life.

He doesn’t think he will ever get over this one.

Quietly observing the other, Doyoung stands behind another seat on the other side of the bed, his hands laid on the backrest for support because if he doesn’t lean on anything, he might just drop on the floor with all the energy sucked out of him for the past three days.

“I already consulted with the Unione Corse about the news to be released. They can’t do anything about the chase since it happened in public. The least they could do is reduce it to kidnapping. With Taeyong possessing a firearm based from the CCTV, the interrogation will lie on Jaehyun. They’re only waiting for him to recover. I’m not sure if Taeyong had a license for it, but we have to tell them he did.”

Yuta remains in his position, watching Jaehyun’s sleeping face tainted by several scratches. “…The bodies?”

“Disposed. The building had been cleaned right away.”

Silence screams loud for a moment and Doyoung begins to feel even more uneasy as he waits for nothing before Yuta sits up properly, the bags under his eyes prominent beneath the fluorescent light. “…Doyoung.” His gaze meets the other’s, both devoid of life. “I’m tired.”

The ticking of the clock rings.

Doyoung gulps and nods as he avoids the Japanese’s eyes for they only remind him of the tragedy they have undergone. “Then you should go back to the hotel. If you wish to get the stuff you left at the hideout, it’s also been cleaned as well. There are no traces of–”

“I want to stop.”

They hold a long eye contact and all the stress wears Doyoung down that he eventually lets the seat he’s leaning on catch his spent body.

“Alright...”

No one speaks again for a while as they both stare into space, reflecting from everything that happened. When it gets too much, when it begins to suffocate him like a snake set to kill, Doyoung lets out the breath he didn’t know he was holding.

“When I heard about it,” he starts to talk about what’s been bugging him because he cannot contain any longer, “I was…. I didn’t know what to feel. Even until now, I feel numb. I wanted to go and help, but what can I do? I’m not equipped to fight. I’d be useless.” Doyoung chuckles yet he sounds miserable. “Just a burden.”

He is the squad member with the most confidence yet it seems like his insecurity was just hidden underneath the will to be strong no matter what.

Yuta’s eyes snap at him, suddenly incensed. From the past three days, it’s the second emotion that has roused from him after agony. “Don’t say that. I’m glad you weren’t there or else we’d be burying one more body and that’s another grave to dig. Who do you think would want to bury you?” He shakes his head as he looks back at Jaehyun. “Not me. Not any of us.”

Their attention is thrown to the stirring in bed. Jaehyun lets out soft groans as his body aches from having been stuck lying down for days. Yuta and Doyoung rush to his sides, waiting for him to wake up.

“Jaehyun?”

The man struggles to open his eyes as the light harshly beats down on him. Doyoung quickly dims it before going back to his place, calling the other’s name softly to let him know they’re there.

Jaehyun finally manages to blink away the blur before his vision sharpens and he scans the surrounding, wincing as he attempts to get up. “Fuck.”

“Lie down,” Yuta gently pushes him down and Jaehyun follows without resistance. “You broke a rib.” He winces, remembering whose fault it is. “I’m really, really sorry about that.”

“What happened?” His groggily asks, voice raspy from not being used. “I can’t–”

Doyoung moves away to call a doctor.

“…I hit you with a car, remember?” Reminding the kingpin right away of the unpleasant events might not be good but they need to know if he needs to have his head checked again. The doctor tried to ask him a few times during the instances he woke up, but it was done in vain. “A fractured rib will take about six weeks to heal and you won’t be able to do much for some time.”

The kingpin winces as his head throbs. Listening to Yuta is arduous. He then recalls the events prior, specifically the car falling off the bridge and, in a snap, his mind clears and his body screams for him to get out of the hospital. “The twins, Yuta. Taeyong? Where are they?”

Yuta goes rigid and his throats closes up as the inevitable he fears finally comes. Jaehyun notices the change, frowning. “Take me to them–”

“…The kids are okay, Jaehyun. Physically okay. No major injuries, but they’re traumatized. They will have to stay for observation.”

Jaehyun blinks a few times, massaging his temple. It cannot be avoided. At least they’re in one piece. “What about Taeyong? God. That was horrible. When I saw it, I just jumped off the bike and,” he stops as he looks between Doyoung and Yuta whose faces seem to darken. “He’s okay too, right?”

Doyoung opens his mouth but whatever he wants to say is stopped by Jaehyun’s sudden chuckling.

“What am I even saying? Of course he is. He got hit before. Falling into the river can’t be–”

“You’ve been unconscious for three days.” Yuta’s fists tighten. “The accident required search and rescue.”

“They didn’t see Fort?” Jaehyun sags and grips the sheets when Yuta shakes his head. “What about Olivia?”

“They saw her. After the search and rescue was dismissed and they had to do a search and retrieval instead. The body was found five hours ago.”

The kingpin lets out a sigh. _Did Taeyong already see her? He probably took it hard._

The Japanese saves him from asking. “They haven’t seen Taeyong’s body yet.”

Jaehyun is nonplussed for a few seconds, confused as to what Yuta means by that. And then as if realization hits him like a truck, he whips his head at the Japanese, eyes wide and glassy, lips trembling.

“Yuta, the kids are fine. They found Olivia too.” He looks at Doyoung and huffs. “What do you mean?”

He knows what it implies, but he can’t believe it. He can never believe it. And he can never accept it.

How does one accept this kind of reality anyway?

Strength leaves Yuta at once as he falls to his seat again, tears running down his face. “Jaehyun. They’ve been searching the river nonstop and they told us to prepare for the worst, t-that Taeyong might be dead already.” He gets choked up, hands trembling. “I’m sorry, Jaehyun. Johnny’s _gone_ too and h-he’s already been cremated separately ‘cause we can’t let them know how he died. Ten,” more tears spill out of Yuta’s tired eyes. “Ten has his ashes. Sicheng is here too. Jaehyun… Jaehyun, _let’s stop._ ”

Jaehyun stares at both of his friends, his own face now damp with salty tears. “That’s a sick joke, right?” He grips the ring and tries to look at it through his blurry sight. “That’s a sick fucking joke?”

“Jaehyun, do you think we would joke about this? Johnny bled to death. Taeyong has been missing for three days. They said in cases like this, it is highly likely that he was swept far off the region.” Doyoung says shakily.

“What do you fucking mean!” Jaehyun screams despite the ache all over his body. He thrashes in his bed, wanting to get out of the room. His torso protests with a sharp pain and his neck aches, making him grasp Yuta for support. “Taeyong is dead?! _Dead?!_ Stop fucking kidding me!”

“Jaehyun,” Yuta holds him down, asking him not to worsen his condition. “I know it’s hard, and there might be a chance he survived but he had three days to return...”

Is there an easy way to tell a friend the likelihood of death of the person most important to him? Is there another way to get through this without all of them hurting?

Jaehyun pries his arm out of Yuta’s hold. “Yuta! No! Can’t you fucking understand?! I said no! He can’t die!”

The other two keeps their mouth shut and let the kingpin grieve because if they are already in the brink of breaking beyond repair, they cannot imagine how Jaehyun feels like.

It must be a hundred times worse. He lost a friend, he lost a lover.

The anguish is immeasurable.

A doctor finally arrives, pausing at the sight of the patient’s breakdown. Jaehyun ignores the intruder as he continues to spout anger, disbelief, regret, longing...all in the middle of mourning.

“Then why did you fucking keep me alive?! You shouldn’t have sent me here!”

Doyoung gives an apologetic look at the doctor before turning to Jaehyun. “I know you’re in shock. You’re broken. But…you have the twins. They need you.”

Jaehyun hears nothing. He lies back down, an arm over his eyes as he hides the way they keep pouring out tears no matter how much he wants to stop. The physical pain cannot even compare to what his wrangled heart is going through. It’s wringing, pulled and pounded.

If this is a dream then he wants to wake up and never go back to sleep so he doesn’t have to feel this way ever again.

He lies there, calling Taeyong’s name over and over as he remembers the nightmare he had back then.

Taeyong soaked, standing in a huge puddle of water with the two little bodies by his feet.

 _A premonition_. A premonition he shouldn’t have ignored. His subconscious was preparing him for _his_ world slipping out of his grip.

When he finishes the checkup, they request for a wheelchair for him as he cannot strain himself by walking right after being bedridden. The morgue, like any other hospitals, is located in the basement. They take the nearest staff elevator.

Doyoung wheels Jaehyun to the room where the bodies are kept. All three of them, including Yuta are asked to wear gloves.

“Um, c-can we see Olivia Lee?” Doyoung asks the diener who lets them and opens one of the freezers, rolling out a refrigerating table where a body is sealed in a translucent bag.

Jaehyun stiffens and grips the wheelchair’s armrest as he begins to get choked up once again, while Doyoung does his best rubbing the man’s shoulder in comfort.

But he knows that no matter what he does, he can’t alleviate the pure devastation his friend is in.

He then wheels Jaehyun closer to the corpse and when he realizes the kingpin isn’t going to move, he zips the bag open, instantly looking away so he won’t have to stare at the woman’s pale face.

Surprisingly, Jaehyun doesn’t get frantic. Instead, he remains immobile as he stares inscrutably at the corpse of his husband’s sister.

_Why does it look like she’s just sleeping?_

_Does Taeyong look like this too? Cold, paralyzed, but sleeping._

Jaehyun places a hand on Olivia’s head, caressing it. She’s freezing under his touch, unmoving. He can’t help but to imagine it’s Taeyong he’s touching, because he might not be able to do that anymore. They may not find his body. He might not even get to send him off.

With each second that passes, he regrets waking up. _Would it have been better if I never knew?_

“Ethan…”

Doyoung looks at his friend, puzzled. Is Jaehyun’s grief causing him to hallucinate now?

Jaehyun continues to caress the dead woman’s head as his eyes well up and eventually overflow with anguish.

“Ethan. Come on, you missed breakfast. Why are you sleeping so much? Don’t you hate it? You sleep so lightly that even my breathing can wake you. Come on, Ethan. Let’s get out of bed. The twins won’t bother you. Don’t try to stab their hands with the fork, okay? It was fine, but I think they got scared. I’ll give you a candy if you eat the broccolis, I promise.” Jaehyun chuckles and blinks away the tears. “You’re worse than the gremlins, you know? Why do you dislike broccolis? They taste good.”

Jaehyun grips the flap of the bag, tugging.

“Please wake up so we can go home.”

Yuta finally cannot take it anymore and walks out of the room before squatting down, muffling his own cries with both hands while Doyoung is rooted on his spot behind Jaehyun, his hand has long stopped providing futile comfort.

“Jaehyun, that’s not Taeyong.”

“What?” Jaehyun looks up at him. “Are you crazy? There’s a right time for jokes, Doyoung. But for now, help me wake Ethan because we have to eat. If he continues to only eat chocolates and candies, he’ll get diabetes.”

“Jaehyun,” Doyoung says the other’s name like a blend of a helpless whine and resignation. “Jaehyun, you’re the one who needs to wake up.”

“Why?”

“Taeyong’s body is still missing. That is Olivia you are looking at. Remember, you asked if you could visit the morgue?”

The kingpin’s hand stops caressing the corpse’s head and then he looks back at it – he doesn’t see Taeyong anymore. The face has morphed into someone else’s. Jaehyun stares at her for a moment before quietly weeping.

“Okay.” He whispers weakly. “Okay.”

Jaehyun takes in Olivia’s face for a full five minutes.

 _How painful is it not to be able to see him again and kiss him goodbye?_ The voice in his head asks, and the kingpin sighs in resignation before asking Doyoung to get him out of the room.

_Painful. Really painful, that I wouldn’t wish this pain upon my enemy._

_“Jung Yunho, alias Elliot De la Croix of the crime group Invictus and businessman Ethan Lee who was formerly accused of tax evasion and illegal detention in his casino are still yet to be found. Authorities speculate that the bodies are washed far from the region. The corpse that was found in the submerged car was a female’s. Relatives of the casino owner chose not to reveal the identity of the second body._

_As for the children that miraculously survived the accident, they are reportedly in shock and unfit to be interviewed._

_Regarding the relations between Jung Yunho and Ethan Lee, it was confirmed by the police that the latter was highly targeted by the criminal boss and due to the failure of framing up the businessman, Jung resorted to kidnapping two children who are also yet to be identified, as well as the aforementioned female._

_Based on a CCTV, Lee was seen firing at the vehicle, erecting suspicions of illegal possession of firearms yet it was quickly refuted as it turns out that Lee acquired a gun license. This information was disclosed by the spouse of the late casino owner, who is currently recovering from his own injuries caused by getting hit by a car at the peak of the chase._

_As the hunt for De la Croix is not yet done, the police will not close the case as there is still a chance that the criminal is alive._

_The husband of Lee stated that he will leave it up to the authorities to halt the search and retrieval operations. According to him, they don’t want to hold on to the meager probability of the Red Phoenix’s owner being alive._

_Due to these current events, the nation expresses their worry for their own safety._

_A very old but relevant question arises within the conversations among the people of France: Is the corruption so rich and blatant that endangering civilians might just happen on the daily?”_

Sicheng turns off the TV and checks his watch. “We need to go to the crematorium now if we don’t wanna be late for the ceremony.”

They head out of the house in Gambetta Avenue, aiding Jaehyun in getting in a van. The twins, quiet since they woke up in the hospital, flank the kingpin. Ten sits at the very back as he clutches Johnny’s urn.

After the cremation, they will go back to Bordeaux as Olivia’s remains will be temporarily kept in a modern house purchased under Jaehyun’s name. Léonie suffers an acute heart attack upon knowing the death of her daughter and the likelihood of Taeyong meeting the same fate and so she cannot be flown to Paris for the cremation. Right now, she’s stable once again and is being ordered to remain in the hospital longer than intended. The urn will be taken to her when her health gets better as advised by the doctor, worried that she will suffer another heart attack.

Ten gazes out the window as soon as they get to the road. The urn is warm in his embrace as if telling him Johnny will not completely disappear. He’s here, in his arms, and Ten will keep the other as a part of his life until his last breath.

He has no more tears left to cry so he just watches the scenery outside, slowly changing from rows and rows of establishments to the tranquility of the cemetery. He then looks forward where Yuta drives and reminisces the days Johnny was their designated driver.

It’s an agonizing memory now, but he’s strong.

They arrive at the crematorium soon enough. The coffin is brought in and placed on a catafalque, and then a simple semi-religious ceremony is held to commemorate the siblings. At first, they were perturbed by the idea of having a ceremony before the cremation but Jaehyun remembered that his husband knew a lot of the bible, ironically, so Olivia could possibly be a believer. Hence, the service.

After the ceremony, the body is burned right away. Jaehyun, as well as the twins stay for the committal of the coffin to the cremators.

It takes over an hour for the body to be burned, and then the bone fragments are powdered before they are transferred to the urn.

Olivia’s granite urn is honey in color and square in shape with ornate designs resembling vines. Jaehyun also bought a lidded granite box with a craved image of a Phoenix in front where he can put some of Taeyong’s stuff that were blessed in the service since there isn’t a body to be burned.

During the whole process, he’s calm and collected. He initially thought he would break down but he surprises himself by staying composed, although not speaking a single word. There’s a drilling ache in his chest that he doesn’t ignore. He even acknowledges it wholeheartedly as it signifies his longing for his late husband. Maybe, he’s willing to hurt for the rest of his years. Taeyong turned him into a masochist. If it means remembering him every single day, then Jaehyun will subject himself to the torture of knowing the knife thrower is no longer in this world.

Then, as he sits with the Invictus members in the chapel, he’s notified that the ashes are ready to be taken home.

Jaehyun carries both of the urn and the vase.

He cannot wait to bring Taeyong home.

Moving doesn’t take a day as they have hired professional movers to grab every single thing from the penthouse. The Black Room men have been assigned to pack up the weapons so that the movers won’t have to.

When the sky darkens, everything is finally in the new house. Jaehyun sighs as he looks at the boxes and boxes of both of their belongings. It will be a hassle to put them in the right places as he is not yet familiar with the interior of the house; he bought it on a whim last year. They stayed there once and it wasn’t followed by another.

Luckily, the squad will be staying with him for a while before heading back to Korea. Ten insists that he needs a personal nurse to look after him since he has a few more weeks to heal properly, to which doesn’t deny. Before, he’s stubborn as a mule. But if he suddenly collapses in pain, who’s going to give first aid? Surely, the twins can’t play doctor with him. And Kim Jaejoong already took it upon himself to look after Jung Hyunwoo.

Jaehyun looks around for the perfect spot to place the urns. Should he put them in the living room or in the master’s bedroom? He wants to be with Taeyong wherever he goes, so he might as well bring it wherever he goes inside of the house.

He chuckles at the thought of carrying a vase in the shower.

“Jaehyun, I know it’s inappropriate to talk about this right now but…about Invictus –“

“I’m leaving.”

Doyoung doesn’t get surprised. No one among Ten, Sicheng and Yuta bat an eye. They have been expecting it. In fact, while the kingpin couldn’t be talked to, they have discussed about leaving the underground business.

Of course, it won’t be easy to drop the clients. They need an immediate solution if they want instant peace when they disappear off the face of the Mafia world.

That’s why Jaehyun has thought of a remedy that will make it easy for all of them.

Jaehyun carefully takes a seat on the sofa, mindful of his injury. It’s clean. No dust swirls in the air. The housekeeper must be cleaning regularly.

“Can we access some of Jung Yunho’s wealth?”

Doyoung nods. “A portion of it.”

Nodding slowly, the Invictus kingpin looks at each of them with finality in his eyes. “Give his possessions to the Corsican Mafia as a farewell memento. Invictus is registered in Flavio Ricci’s organization, and even if we helped each other in tackling the problem with Garnet, he might not let us go just like that. So all the weapons and products and money found in Garnet’s headquarters will be given to him. Our clients will be directed to the Corsican groups. That will help their organization flourish.”

“Should I contact them now?”

Jaehyun nods at Doyoung who immediately goes to work before looking at the twins. “Are you guys hungry?”

Haechan timidly nods, fiddling as Haera stares at her feet dangling over the edge of the sofa.

Smiling softly, Jaehyun pats their heads and glances at the squad members. “Who knows how to cook?”

Sicheng, Ten and Yuta exchange looks. The Thai nurse slips away with an excuse to find a room to put Johnny’s urn, and Sicheng pulls out his phone.

“Gaming.”

That leaves the Japanese gawking in disbelief at the two’s shamelessness. He turns to the twins with an embarrassed face, scratching his head. “My cooking is subpar, but that will do for tonight. As long as you fill your tummies with something, I guess.”

They watch Yuta scurry away to find the kitchen and Jaehyun winces as something drops to the floor with a clang, followed by the assigned cook’s _gomenasai!_

As Ten is locked inside a room, Sicheng busy with his game and Doyoung currently in a conference with the Corsican Mafia leader, Jaehyun is left to tend to the twins.

Since waking up from his three-day coma, he hasn’t had a decent conversation with them. The twins are now quiet as a mouse. Haechan has always been quiet, but Haera almost convinces everyone she’s gone mute as she only talks when she wants to.

And that can be counted in one hand.

The two refuse to cooperate with Jaehyun in attending therapies. Haechan reasons they’re fine but they are nowhere near it. Jaehyun has no idea what to do if they are unwilling to get over the trauma. Maybe, he will try to talk them everyday into seeing a professional until they realize they need it.

With nothing to say to the twins while waiting for Yuta to finish whatever he salvages from the fridge, Jaehyun picks up a small-sized carton from the pile. Sicheng rushes to him, worried that his injury might worsen.

“I can carry this. It’s light.” Jaehyun bounces it in his arms, listening to the jostling of the contents. “I think these are just magazines.” After reassuring his friend, he goes to the master’s bedroom. He’s glad the house is a bungalow so he needs not to climb stairs.

He comes back to the living room to pick up Taeyong’s granite box, murmuring an apology for forgetting to bring it with him right away.

There’s a shelf attached to the wall next to the bed and Jaehyun temporarily puts the granite box there, planting a quick kiss on it before sitting in bed and going through the contents of the carton. True to his assumption, there are only some books and magazines in there. While checking each item, he thinks about Red Phoenix and the company. Can he continue running both of it alone? What about Taeyong’s investment in Château Mouton Rothschild?

Maybe he should drop one of them. He also needs to take care of Taeyong’s accounts. Jaehyun mentally takes note of all the things he needs to do, promising to start working on them one by one when he completely heals.

As he gets to the bottom of the carton, he sees a notebook. Opening it to the first page, Jaehyun realizes what it is.

Taeyong’s journal from the psychiatric facility.

Should he read it? It’s like a diary of the patients. Taeyong would hit his head if he dares to invade his privacy.

 _Tch. What privacy? Your husband never had it._ Jaehyun glances furtively at the granite box as though getting caught snooping would put him in trouble before starting to read Taeyong’s entries.

His beloved’s messy handwriting amuses him. It looks like Taeyong just wrote for the sake of it. Only the knife thrower would instantly decode those weird scribbles in one second.

Some of them are neatly written, though. They talk about his complaints regarding the food, the noisy patients, the activities he was forced to participate in. One of them has Jaehyun’s brows raising.

 _Taeyong kissed his nurse to steal the keys?_ Jaehyun’s lower lip juts out. That’s unfair. Taeyong hated it when women breathed in the younger’s direction but the former actually kissed someone on the mouth? Jaehyun sends a playful glare to the granite box.

“When you visit me in my dreams, I will scold you.”

He pauses after that and then giggles at how stupid he must look. Talking to an dead man’s stuff? He must be crazy. But Jaehyun supposes he can talk to it like how others talk to their plants. They said the plants can feel their owner’s feelings when they’re being talked to.

_Will Taeyong hear me from hell if I talk to his stuff everyday?_

Not wanting to be dumber, he goes back to reading.

The more pages he turns, the deeper the entries get. Taeyong talked about his struggles at night, missing Jaehyun (he whispers an apology to the granite box), and planning how to escape the facility. His distraction was a newfound friend called Mark who did nothing but follow him like a pup, draw portraits ( _the frames are in the other boxes, right?_ ) and try to steal his chocolates. Apparently, the guy was a kleptomaniac.

Jaehyun wonders if this Mark is still in the facility. He sincerely hopes Taeyong’s friend got better.

He doesn’t even notice he has reached the last page as he is greeted by a long entry.

**_“If you’re reading this Jaehyun, then you’re a fat ass dick. Your dick is fat is what I mean. My journal is private property. You wanna get sued? But how is that gonna stop you when I’m gone?”_ **

His heart constricts.

**_“I am writing this at 2 in the morning, dated November 27, 2020. Does this seem like a last note? Perhaps. Solitude and darkness can push you to do ridiculous things. Ha! As if I don’t do ridiculous shit already!_ **

**_Anyway, I plan to escape on Christmas because on Christmas, you deserve a gift and I am your gift. Surprisingly, I still know what day it is. There are no calendars here. I don’t know where they are._ **

**_After this, I don’t know if I’m going to write again. My previous entries already talked about whatever I could talk about in such a closed place. Everything is limited. From the rooms you can visit to the food you can eat. Considering my continuous chocolate supply, I guess I’m a little special, hehe._ **

**_Bitch._ **

**_No, I just wanted to cuss you out. You’re a bitch ;p_ **

**_Moving on…_ **

**_My emotions are limited like we all already know. So the idea of missing the two friends I made here is weird. Beyond weird. I’m not sure if ‘missing’ is the word but I can see myself remembering them positively. I’m pretty sure I’ll leave a deeper impression with how I’ll escape this shithole. Tell me when I forget. They will call you to report what happens."_ **

Oh, Jaehyun remembers exactly how they met again that Christmas day. He almost had a heart attack when Taeyong’s head popped out from the backseat. The man mischievously disturbed his driving just to stop Jaehyun from sending him back to the facility.

_Can you please appear right before me again, Taeyong? I promise, this time I won’t get scared._

**_“So why are you reading this? Where did I go? Am I sleeping? Am I outside hunting people? Or am I simply not around any longer? Surely, you won’t dare touch my journal if I’m there. I kind of want to know your thoughts when reading this._ **

**_But if I’m totally gone, turned into dust in the wind, that means it’s over. Hell is over. The game is over._ **

**_I am over._ **

**_The very reason that danger follows you is because of me, right? Because you chose to deal with me. Maybe if you didn’t bother with me, you wouldn’t be doing this._ **

**_Because I started the fire to provoke you, you are now at this point in your life._ **

**_I killed the bastard not because he called my mother what he is._ **

**_I killed him because you didn’t want me to. And in what better way could I assert my power over you if not showing you that you cannot control me?_ **

**_And all that will unravel in the future is because you chose to be with me._ **

**_Pray tell, Jaehyun. Do you regret it? Do you regret this life?_ **

**_Do you regret me?_ **

**_I will never know your answer._ **

**_In this entry, I want to end it with a serious note. When I’m gone and things are better, easier for you as a kingpin, it means hell ended. No more to tail you, I swear that.”_ **

_But Taeyong, I would prefer that you were with me as things got better._

**_“I probably have already given you everything I could.”_ **

****

_You are my everything, first and foremost. But you’re gone. You gave me everything and took them away in a snap. How cruel of you._

****

**_“Hell began with me and it will conclude with me._ **

**_I am the ground zero, Jaehyun. The epicenter. As the plague finishes, paradise will come. The very goal that you set for yourself – standing on the precipice of success. If not, I must have miscalculated. Should I apologize? I better not. It will do nothing._ **

**_You cannot forgive a ghost._ **

**_Yet even though I’m gone, tattoo it in your mind and heart that the thrill I made you experience is incomparable. So remember that without me, you are less. Ain’t I the best?_ **

**_The best you’ve ever had._ **

**_The pen is running out of ink. I will stop now. My head hurts._ **

**_When I get out of here, I want to see you. I ache to see you._ **

**_I’ll go now, dimple boy._ **

**_‘Til we meet again.”_ **

**- _Taeyong Lee_**

A tear drops on Taeyong’s signature, smearing the ink. Jaehyun looks at the granite box with angry tears in his eyes before furiously throwing the journal against the wall and marching over to the shelf, slamming one of his hands next to it. His injury pulsates.

“Easy?! Does it look easy?! Taeyong! Lee Taeyong! Fucking tell me if it looks fucking easy! How fucking selfish of you!”

Jaehyun screams at the phoenix looking back at him with its sharp eyes, vaguely hearing the running footsteps of the Invictus members to the room.

“You gave me everything, you said?! You did! You did! But you took them away!” The kingpin’s torso begins to hurt yet he dismisses it. Fuck healing. _He wants to die._ “What do you want me to do now, huh?! Continue on with my life as if nothing happened?! As if you didn’t happen?! As if we didn’t happen?!”

Doyoung quickly tugs the twins away from the heartbreaking scene and stays with them in one of the rooms far away from where Jaehyun is.

“Fuck you! Fuck you, you selfish asshole! I shouldn’t have loved you! I shouldn’t have married you! You fucking dare to leave me like this?! We haven’t even reached a year being married! You come and go whenever you want!? You cannot do that!” Jaehyun cries, broken and miserable.

He doesn’t want to move on. He wants to hurt and hurt and hurt until Taeyong comes back from the dead and fight him for being stubborn.

“What! Why didn’t you come back?! Why aren’t you here?! Taeyong, do I not mean anything to you? How is it so easy for you to leave me? Do you no longer need me, Taeyong? Come on,” Jaehyun continues to bawl his eyes out, spilling all that he has kept for days. “Taeyong, do you not love me?”

His legs give out under him and Jaehyun slides down, quickly caught by Sicheng.

“Taeyong, do you not love me? You said you are invested in me, right? Did I do anything wrong? Did I disappoint you? Why did you leave? Do you not want me anymore? Taeyong,” Jaehyun cries his heart out in Sicheng’s arms, gripping the other’s sleeve while he stares up at the Phoenix. “Taeyong, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I couldn’t save you. Please come back to me, okay? Let’s break free from our chains together. Come on, this is not funny anymore, Taeyong. I won’t force you to be nice to the gremlins, please. I promise.”

Yuta’s gaze lowers to the ground. He picks up on the soft sniffles from Ten behind him, and he turns in his heel to hug the Thai tightly.

God knows how much Ten is suffering from losing Johnny and watching their friend go through the same torment.

“How can I go through each day without you next to me, Yong? Who’s going to annoy me? Who’s going to console me with candies? Who’s going to…who’s going to complete me, Taeyong? I’m less, I’m less without you. You’re right. So please come back to me.” Jaehyun gradually weakens in Sicheng’s hold, still staring at the eyes of the phoenix.

From his view, it looks like the mythical creature is glowering at him with blazing eyes.

He can almost see Taeyong stare right back at him.

The grieving man reaches out, trying to hold the phantom hand only he can see.

“Please come back to me, Ethan…”

Red Phoenix. A mythical creature that gets reborn after every death. The ultimate symbol of strength and resumption. It dies, yet it lives again. Time after time. It is born from its fire, from the ashes of its past, from the blazing ball of the sun.

Lee Taeyong is a phoenix. Was once thought to be a myth. Evaded death repeatedly. Came back stronger than before, every single time.

Jaehyun’s body switches off, his hand falling limp to his side as he collapses from emotional exhaustion.

His body may be asleep, but his mind is not. It calls for him, a whispering phantasm.

_Worry not, Jaehyun. I am not gone. I will never leave you._

Flavio Ricci’s acquisition of Garnet’s weapons, products and stored cash is relatively easy. All that was collected from the headquarters in Paris was sent to the island by chopper, and the clients from the joint business are now catered by the groups under Corsican Mafia. The rest of the French transactions are halted and compensated while the ongoing Korean operations will be finished one at a time.

Then there will be no more renewals.

Invictus will end its reign, never to be seen again.

Despite that, the leader of the Corsican Mafia organization will offer aid to the Invictus members should they need it.

Jaehyun will keep Red Phoenix afloat. Regarding the others, he still hasn’t decided.

The search and retrieval operation also stopped and the authorities extended their condolences to him.

It has only been three weeks. Three weeks since he woke up to the news of losing a friend and a husband. Three weeks since his heart begins to pump tar instead of blood. Three weeks since his soul died.

Three weeks since he started feeling nothing but agony.

But Jaehyun thinks he’s doing well if waking up to spend the days with the twins and help them get over the accident is anything to go by.

He’s hurting and it’s okay. The squad is with him and they are broken too, but broken pieces put together will become whole. He hopes that they will be able to hide the cracks one day that when someone looks at them, the scars will not be seen.

Looking back at all the sins they committed, Jaehyun supposes that maybe, Taeyong’s disappearance is the reparation of it all. Taeyong’s death paid for the crimes they did and even though it’s scalding within hellfire, Jaehyun wishes that his husband’s enjoying his stay there.

Jaejoong is at the hospital to watch over Jung Hyunwoo again. He doesn’t really know for sure why he’s doing this – if it’s to redeem himself or it can be an unknown reason. He is the one that delivered the news of the accident at Pont de Bir-Hakeim and from then on, the patient’s health has been getting more stable.

To put it simply, Jung Yunho’s disappearance – and the implication of his inevitable death serves to be a medicine to his brother.

His phone rings so he puts the medical book he’s reading atop a nearby table before picking up the call with a sigh.

“Sungjong?”

_“The tools are here.”_

“When did you arrive?”

_“Five minutes ago.”_

“…So we’re doing it right away.”

_“Seems like it. Please come back.”_

The call ends. Knowing he has no right to stall, he picks up his book and reminds a nurse on the way out to update him about Jung Hyunwoo’s progress.

Jaehyun plans to reopen Red Phoenix by next week. He knows he still needs a few more weeks to heal and maybe more than month, but he feels bored and miserable having nothing to do to keep his mind off of Taeyong. He appreciates the other’s memories plaguing him every second of the day but at times, it becomes overwhelming to the point of being stuck in the master’s bedroom just dealing with constant pain alone.

He’s aware that he _wants_ this pain, but he also doesn’t appreciate being useless.

So in preparation for the reopening, he asked Yuta and Sicheng to head to the casino to inspect the establishment. Since the war, they haven’t paid Red Phoenix a visit even once. Who knows, Fort might have done something to it as well while they were busy setting up things back in Garnet.

Outside, sitting on the lawn are Doyoung and the twins who look like they’re discussing a serious topic based on the siblings’ furrowed brows. Jaehyun decides to go to them, walking slowly with a hand on his side. His rib still throbs occasionally.

“You know how to cook what we had yesterday?”

Doyoung stops talking with the children and frowns at him. “That’s a Japanese cuisine. I am not Japanese and the only Japanese person here just drove away.”

“Well,” Jaehyun rubs his nape with a small, shy smile. “Don’t tell Yuta but it was good.”

“Okay. Should I wake Ten now?”

“No. Let him sleep. He’ll come out of his room when he wants to.”

Johnny’s face flashes in his mind and he looks back at the house, wondering how Ten copes at the moment.

Right then, his stomach growls quite loudly. “I’m hungry.”

Doyoung presses his lips firmly to suppress a laugh before shrugging and telling the kids he’s gonna be busy, before disappearing inside the house.

Left with the twins, Jaehyun sits down the grass with them supporting his side, wincing a little. He looks between them as they suddenly become quiet around him like the previous days.

“Haechan.”

The boy stops picking grasses to look at him. Between him and Haera, he was the more comfortable one with Jaehyun. Now though, both of them are too quiet when he’s within close proximity.

Jaehyun is prepared for this; he has been since last night. After his umpteenth breakdown when he found Taeyong’s journal, he realized he can’t keep crying. He can hurt quietly, but crying will not do anyone good, especially the twins. They can hear him, they can see him. And if he wants them to move on, he has to show them a good example.

“I don’t know if we can talk about this now, but the right time might never come so I might as well give it a shot. I’m sorry.”

Haera looks up from picking something from her finger.

“I’m sorry, because…” He takes a deep breath, exhaling slowly to calm down. “Because I kept a secret from you. Your father died. Taeyong…”

Jaehyun pauses and gazes at the fountain. Everytime he says that name out loud, his eyes just automatically well up. He has already cried so many times in front of the children and he wants to try if he can be unaffected for a change, yet it’s already failing.

Taking a few more deep breaths, his eyes finally stop watering. Jaehyun blinks away the tears and bravely faces the twins. “Taeyong killed him. There’s no other way to say it. You know what kind of people we are. I’m…I’m apologizing in his stead. If you guys want to…want to find a new home because you can’t stay with a murderer’s apprentice, then I will understand. If you decide to report, I will also understand.”

He can’t imagine being left once again. Taeyong’s departure was so sudden that it ruined him beyond mending. But if the twins really leave, at least he’s prepared.

Haera wraps her arms around her knees, gazing at him. “If he’s unapologetic, why should you say sorry for him?”

Her question makes Jaehyun and Haechan look at her with surprise.

“Taeyong doesn’t regret it. And I don’t hate it.”

“…Why not?”

“Why should I hate the person who saved us from abuse?”

Jaehyun reels in shock, eyes wide. “What do you mean?”

Haera’s brows furrow as she lowers her head. Before Jaehyun knows it, tears are already falling to her arms.

“Papa kept hitting us and calling us mean things. He would leave and not come back for a day or two, and we would be so hungry. But even when he came back, the food wouldn’t be enough. He kept us locked inside the house, too.”

Jaehyun remembers Haechan telling him about not having friends.

“We went here because our mama was working here. But papa said she has a new family now. After that, he hated us.”

The little girl angrily wipes her tears away. “Taeyong said there is neither good nor bad. That things are only called good or bad because people hate being different, so they sealed the world in two boxes.” She is sobbing now while recounting her unfriendly interactions with the departed. “How can I hate him when he stood up for me when that rude man told me rude things? He was the only person that wasn’t afraid of bad people.”

She then looks at Jaehyun, cheeks damp with tears.

“I don’t think he’s bad. Or good. I think he’s great.”

It’s too late to stop a long tear from rolling down his face. Jaehyun wipes it quickly and chuckles as Haechan nods, sitting next to him.

“He was scary but…but he would scare the bad guys away. Jaehyun?”

“…Yes?”

Haechan juts out his lower lip. “Can we call you dad?”

For the first time since his beloved’s death, Jaehyun’s heart soars.

And then Doyoung breaks the sentimental scene as he rushes to give Jaehyun his phone. “Yuta’s calling.”

The sharpshooter smiles at the twins, patting their heads before answering the call. “What is it?”

_“Well, we had the whole establishment checked and there’s nothing alarming that happened. We found a wolf, though.”_

“A wolf? Ah, yes. They’re Taeyong’s. Wait. I know there are two.”

_“One of them is dead. I think the other resorted to cannibalism.”_

“Aren’t those wild?”

_“Wong Yukhei helped us.”_

Jaehyun nods. “Alright. If nothing’s wrong, then you can come back. I’ll need to check Taeyong’s laptop to gather the contact numbers of everyone working in Red Phoenix.”

Before he hangs up, the Japanese points out a change in him. _“You sound…more cheerful? What’s up?”_

“Nothing,” the sharpshooter grins and walks the kids back in the house. “Nothing.”

The face he sees when he gets in his apartment is Sungjong’s bored one as the blonde man inspects a hook connected to a long, thick chain.

“This is going to be really barbaric, isn’t it?”

Sungjong blinks at him. “You never saw it before?”

“No,” Jaejoong takes a seat and watches the other man put the chained hook in a black duffle bag. “My job was on-call. I never went to the torture chamber. How I pare flesh and bones for repacking doesn’t have to be messy.”

The doctor receives a small smile.

“Then you’ll be in for a ride this time.”

Jaejoong opens his mouth to ask a question he instantly forgets when he sees the long-haired man step out of the bathroom wearing one of his blazers and nothing underneath, exposing the phoenix tattoo. “Are we finally doing it today?”

Standing in front of a mirror to comb his hair, Taeyong side-eyes him. “This is the perfect time, Jaej. You know where he is, don’t you?”

“Since there’s no way he can escape with all the airports and borders conducting a checkpoint in main roads, I know he will feel the safest in _that_ hideout. He’s probably been hiding there.” Jaejoong eyes the knife thrower’s hand in a cast. “How’s your hand?”

Taeyong gives up tying his hair and lets it loose. “Could be worse. With your tender loving care, the patient is gonna be just fine.” Sarcasm is strong in that sentence. He walks over to where the duffle bag is and looks through the tools himself. “Did you hear anything from Jaehyun?”

Jaejoong observes him, trying to find a hint of concern. “The last news I got was that the acquisition of Invictus’ operations pushed through.”

“Huh. I _died_ and he gave it up just like that?”

Something moves within the doctor and he glares at the other. “He thinks you’re dead. You cannot judge a person in grief. What’s worse is, the dead man is the husband of the person mourning. Do you know how guilty I was when I lied to him about not going to your sister’s cremation because you prefer to finish this all on your own?”

“I didn’t ask you to watch over me every minute of the day.” Taeyong deadpans.

“You came to me right away when you got out of the river. I have to make sure you don’t get out of here impulsively.”

“Why?” Taeyong closes the bag and kicks it to Sungjong’s direction. “What happened when I didn’t face Fort all on my own? Didn’t Johnny die? Didn’t Olivia die? How are the gremlins doing? Answer me.”

Jaejoong sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. “They’re not doing well, as far as I know. You sound like you care.”

“Jaej, do you think if I stayed with them, it’ll be easier? Everybody knows about the accident. All eyes will be on us and we won’t be able to do what the three of us are about to do. Because Jaehyun’s paranoid ass is going to lock all of us up.”

“Did that ever stop you before?”

The knife thrower pauses to think and shrugs with a lopsided smile. “It did. Twice. Now quit messing with my conscience ‘cause you’re just tiring yourself out. If it’s gonna make you feel any better, after this I’m going home.” He cocks his head at the doctor. “You will drive me there.”

“Okay.” Jaejoong instantly says since he has no choice in the matter anyway. “Are we going _now_?”

“So much time was wasted because of this damn wrist. Thought I’d be breaking it for a totally different reason.”

Sungjong picks up the bag, looking at his boss. “And what is that?”

They realized they shouldn’t have been curious about it as Taeyong eagerly pumps his hand up and down in the air by his crotch.

Sungjong’s nose scrunches. “If we’re ready, we should go. Fort might get desperate and start burrowing into the soil.”

When he sees the state of the fridge with its content only being bottles of cold water, Yunho slams it close. He’s been hiding for weeks. All of his stocked food has been consumed. No one’s answering his calls as well like they are refusing to be involved with him. Not even the Sicilian groups want to have anything to do with him now that his name is hot in the most wanted list.

If only he knew they would treat him like this, he shouldn’t have spared them his time.

But it’s too late now.

He jumps in shock when his front door is gunned down. Yet the initial shock he felt is nothing compared to what he feels when Taeyong stands in front of him in all his glory, carrying a suppressed sniper rifle.

Behind him stand Kim Jaejoong and Lee Sungjong.

“Surprise, Oedipus!” Taeyong waves at him with the gun. “If you don’t get it, it means you’re a motherfucker.”

“Taeyong…”

“What? You can’t believe it?” The knife thrower chuckles and drapes the sniper rifle over his shoulder. “You got away; it’s just natural that I did, too. I thought giving you three weeks was enough for you to prepare. How come you look terrified?”

Yunho grits his teeth as he takes a step back. “You’re getting nothing out of me. I have no more to give you. Even the Italian groups don’t want to hear me out. You ruined me! What more do you want?”

“Your life.”

Panicked laughter rings inside the house. “So you’re gonna kill me now? How will that be satisfying? I fooled you for years, Taeyong. Would shooting me dead really cover for all of that?”

Taeyong runs his tongue over his lower lip and grins, causing Fort to take another step backwards. “That’s why I’ll play with you first.” He slaps the back of his hand against Jaejoong’s stomach. “Gotta make the most out of it.”

Yunho doesn’t get the chance to react as Jaejoong shoots him with a tranquilizer, sending him in a deep slumber in a matter of seconds.

Jaejoong gets another slap on the stomach.

“So cool, Jaej! Put him somewhere nice. There must be a basement here.”

His whole body feels heavy when he rouses. His eyes are sandy and blurry, and the first thing he registers from his surrounding is the sound of a chain scraping over a steel pipe.

The metallic sound continues to grate his ears until he completely opens his eyes and groggily scans the room.

 _I’m in the basement,_ Yunho’s head catches up.

The next things he notices are Jaejoong and Sungjong standing by the door, and that he’s bound tight to a chair, his upper body secured by a thick rope that goes down his arms which are tied to the armrests, and his palms are pressed on a table in front. He tries to lift his hands but they don’t move.

It feels like they’re glued to the surface of the table.

Yunho’s gaze falls on the man sitting across him, the rifle long gone from Taeyong’s hold. “So this is what you have in mind?”

“You’ve never seen me in my default headspace yet, haven’t you? If that’s the case, then I’d be more than glad to show you.”

“Wait, Taeyong.” Yunho speaks through the pulsating headache. “Can’t we talk this out? You already took Garnet away.” He smiles, trying to appear docile. “Can’t we call it a truce?”

Yet his plea is met with a look of pure amusement as Taeyong’s wide, blue eyes stare at him condescendingly. “Call it a truce? What’s gotten in your head, Yunho? Are you okay? Let me see.” He gets off his seat and goes over to the Garnet kingpin before suddenly shaking the latter’s head. Yunho endures it. “You good? Why would we call it a truce? What else did you fuck with aside from Red Phoenix and Invictus?”

Taeyong leans against the table, his good hand supporting his weight. “What else, huh? Right. That’s my sister. She’s dead for real. And since you got no family for me to play with, then I’ll go with you.”

Yunho stiffens. “Please–”

He gets cut off with a raucous laughter. Taeyong’s head is thrown back as his body quivers along with the disturbingly loud noises coming out of him.

“Oh _how_ I missed listening to the sound of please coming from my playmates! What does that mean, Yunho?” His eerie gaze darts to the bound kingpin accompanied by a creepy smile fit for a lunatic. “Begging could translate to a lot of things. Let’s figure it out, shall we?”

Taeyong dumps the duffle bag on the table and takes out a hammer as well as a couple of huge nails from a plastic box, evoking panic from the bound man as a litany of pleas reach him, desperate and absolutely frightened of what those tools entail.

“ _Please,_ Taeyong. I’ll do anything! Just don’t kill me–”

“Do you know why I picked the name Elliot De la Croix?”

Yunho shakes his head. He doesn’t even know why he’s saying no as he didn’t even fully understand the question. “Ethan–”

“Wrong answer. I’ll tell you.” Taeyong snaps and holds one of the rusty nails over Yunho’s right hand. “That is so I could do this to you.”

Without further ado, Taeyong nails Yunho’s right hand to the table, hammering it until he hears the sound of bones breaking.

Yunho’s screams fill the basement.

“Oh no, you’re so loud.” The knife thrower swipes a finger on the blood steadily running over the edge of the table and smears it on Yunho’s cheek. “Sungjong.”

The blonde man shifts behind Fort to cover the latter’s mouth with leather and tying it at the back of his head, muffling the screams.

Taeyong watches the tortured man scream in pain, tsk-ing. “Terrible, terrible. Now I’m certain this would be the scenario if Jesus spat on Pontius Pilate’s face that time. Like how dare you subject me to execution? Again.” He transfers to the other side and continues to be ruthless as he immediately hammers a nail through Yunho’s hand, piercing the flesh and the wooden table beneath. 

“Fuck. Look at that.” More blood seeps out of the wounded hand and Taeyong gently punches the side of Yunho’s head. “Don’t you look cooler like this?”

Jaejoong keeps his eyes on the scene before him. He tries to find a bit of sympathy underneath the resentment he feels yet even as Yunho’s cries grow harsher, he only feels that rush of _need_ to witness him die grotesquely.

“What a fucking baby. When you broke Olivia’s fingers, did you watch her cry as well? Did you listen? Oh wait. I don’t know the sequence of what you did. Did you crush her fingers or snip her tongue first?” Taeyong roughly grabs Yunho’s face. “Why did you shoot her?”

Sungjong sighs softly. “Are you actually expecting him to answer? I can remove the gag.”

Taeyong’s murderous eyes don’t leave Yunho’s face as he allows Sungjong to take the gag off.

“Hush, Yunho. No shouting. Answer me.”

He gets his answer in the form of a blob of spit landing on his cheek.

“Alright,” Taeyong wipes the spit off of his face and looks at his moist palm. “Well I can’t read anything here, Yunho.”

“Just kill me.” The Garnet kingpin gravelly says.

“ _Whaaat_? Earlier you were begging me not to. Make up your damn mind.”

The tortured man repeats what he says, louder and more pained.

Taeyong tilts his head. “Final? Okay. I’m easy to talk to. Maybe if you just asked me before to steal the proposals for you, then nothing of this would happen. Didn’t you know, I disliked Lee Namgyu and there might be a chance I’d help you prevent Red Phoenix from flourishing? No? Right. Because I don’t give a shit about it. Just a sec.”

Holding up a finger, the knife thrower rummages through the bag. “I’ll just let you go. You like that?” Taeyong giggles and pulls out an ax. “Don’t expect too much.”

A cry of pure agony resonates against the four walls of the basement as Taeyong chops both of Yunho’s hands off. The Garnet leader’s arms fall on his sides as his hands remain on the table, and blood soaks his pants before dripping down the floor.

“Why are you so loud? You’re lucky we’re down here. No one’s going to rescue you.”

“If we stay longer, somebody might notice the broken door and report it.”

“Relax, Sungjong. I’ve waited so long for this.” Taeyong goes behind Yunho and fixes the hook, coiling its chain tight around the steel pipe barreled through the bricked wall. “I hope that’s strong enough for our dear friend. Hey.” He backhands Yunho’s head. “Don’t sleep just yet, you fucking bastard. Is that all it takes for you to die? Fucking wimp. Hey Jaejoong. Help Sungjong hoist him to the hook. My wrist’s fucked up.”

Taeyong watches from the sidelines as the two untie Yunho from the chair. “Fuck, I want a cig. Or a candy. Why didn’t we bring anything?”

Jaejoong holds Yunho in front and almost lifts him when the latter calls his name softly. Instead of the shallow infatuation, anger simmers within him.

“Don’t call me that.”

Yunho’s gaze turns dark and then he kicks the doctor with all his might, sending Jaejoong hitting the table.

Taeyong stops playing with his piercings. “Goddamn.”

Grunting, Jaejoong gets up from the floor and angrily manhandles Yunho onto the hook without the help of Sungjong who stands stunned as he watches the blunt metal stab through Fort’s back.

Worse, gut-wrenching pain envelopes the fallen kingpin. His mouth then bleeds and his screams and cries coming out gurgled.

“Stop crying.” Jaejoong huffs and dusts off his hands. “Isn’t this what a butcher does?”

Chuckling, the knife thrower takes his spot in front of the dangling man. “Crazy. How is he still awake? I underestimated his pain tolerance.” He takes out a scissor from the bag and forces Yunho’s mouth open. “Since this is the last time we’re going to see each other, I shall take advantage of it.”

Taeyong pinches Fort’s tongue and pulls it out before mercilessly cutting the bloodied appendage and tossing it to Sungjong who catches the tongue with a confused expression.

“Ain’t it cute?” He looks at Fort whose eyes have gone delirious yet his body seems to start giving up. “Now, I don’t like leaving a huge chunk of evidence so, Jung Yunho–” Taeyong grabs the ax once again. “You may be gone soon, but I will remember you until my last breath like I did to so many others. Say hi to them for me, won’t you?”

Like a crimson waterfall, Yunho’s blood sprays out of his body as Taeyong continuously axes it down until it is torn into two. The sickening sound of bones cracking and flesh being chopped is the only thing Taeyong hears aside from the wild beating of his heart, generating a melodious music only the deranged will love. The right side of the body drops to the floor with a squelch as the remaining half remains hooked, the disfigured skeleton hanging out.

One of the eyeballs rolls on the floor and hits his shoe before it is crushed beneath the sole.

Taeyong takes in the sight of his masterpiece for a moment before dropping the ax and stretching his arm. Who knew that axing with one hand could be taxing?

Jaejoong almost pulls out his phone just to capture the other standing above a pool of red. That second, he realizes just why Lee Namgyu kept his son in secret.

Because none of them will survive the second Taeyong’s out of his leash.

“Well, it’s messy. Sungjong, get rid of the damn house.”

Leaving a trail of bloodied footsteps on the floor, Taeyong and Jaejoong exit the house and gets inside the car. Taeyong uses the waiting time to wipe the blood off of his face, chest and hands with some tissue until Sungjong is settled in the backseat.

They drive away just as the house, together with Yunho’s chopped body are quickly swallowed by the famished tongues of flames.

Jaejoong tosses Taeyong another box of tissue, inwardly mourning for his stained seats. “Should we head to Bordeaux now?”

“Yeah,” the knife thrower answers sharply. “I wanna fucking sleep.”

Is it anxiety? Jaehyun isn’t sure. He cannot name the buzzing feeling in his gut. He knows it will be difficult for Fort to find help and locate them. Otherwise, that damned kingpin should’ve found them already if the Sicilian groups helped him.

_It cannot be him, right? But I shouldn’t be too sure. Maybe I should call Flavio Ricci to –_

“What are you thinking?”

Jaehyun looks up from browsing Taeyong’s files in the laptop and waves Ten over who quickly sits on the edge of the bed. “You just came out of your room?”

“Mhm. I wasn’t really hungry but now I am. And Yuta’s not yet done cooking.” Ten shakes his head with a tiny, sad smile. “Don’t worry about me, Jaehyun. I’m fine.”

He’s not lying. He is fine. He feels so much better every time he finishes crying his eyes out and the only thing he hates about it is how his eyes are really puffy after each breakdown.

Jaehyun decides not to push anymore as merely the sound of Johnny’s name shatters Ten more than he already is.

The same goes towards Jaehyun – the squad tries their best not to mention the knife thrower’s name around him even though they’ve been assured that it’s okay, that Jaehyun prefers hurting than forgetting what it feels to _feel_ for his husband. 

“So, what are you doing?”

“Ah, this.” Jaehyun goes back to the files he’s reading. “These are Red Phoenix’s employee records. Since the casino will reopen next week, I need to familiarize myself with those who work in it. Two days before they resume work, I have to call them all for a meeting to discuss compensation. After all, that’s what they deserve.”

Ten looks at him with a tender gaze. “Jaehyun, don’t you think we’re gray people?”

“Gray?”

“We did all kinds of evil, yet we still care. Doesn’t matter who receives that care. We as a squad care for each other like we’re a family, and then you are now going to legally adopt the twins. When we die, where are we going? Is this change enough to redeem ourselves?”

Jaehyun looks at him. “Do you want redemption?”

The Thai man’s smile widens a fraction before his gaze lowers as he rejects the idea. Jaehyun understands it. He understands how confusing they are as human beings.

“We will be okay.”

Ten meets his gaze and smiles before nodding.

The dining table is filled with sumptuous dishes. Yuta introduces his specialty _Shabu-shabu_ and boasts his cooking excellence.

“Since I can’t do what I used to do for a living, do you think I should be a chef?”

Doyoung does a taste test and hums. “I think you have a chance.”

“Yes!”

“You think that’s a compliment?”

The Japanese scowls at Sicheng who’s already eating his share of the dinner. “Don’t try to insult me when your mouth is full of my food!”

Jaehyun has long given up on encouraging them to mature. He scans the table by looking at their faces, wondering if it would be rowdier if Johnny was here. He would most likely throw a saucer right at Yuta’s face.

He’s in the middle of asking Haera to try some tofu when they hear a car’s engine from outside. They are not expecting any visitors so Jaehyun quietly tells them to stay put as he takes a gun from a drawer. Despite being told to remain sitting, Yuta grabs his own gun and follows Jaehyun out of the house.

He doesn’t know what he’s expecting to see, but it’s certainly not Lee Taeyong stepping out of the vehicle.

Jaehyun’s heart stutters to a stop, before it beats again and gradually palpitates as Taeyong approaches simply wearing a blazer and dark jeans, his hair loose and flowing in the wind.

There on his chest is the Phoenix, resurrecting from the ashes of his previous death. 

_The natural immortality._

His eyes, forever entrancing and bewitching hold Jaehyun’s own, shaky ones.

Yuta lowers his gun.

Everyone in the house comes out to check what’s going on and reels at the unbelievable sight.

With wobbly legs the sharpshooter tries to take a step closer, but he’s too shocked to properly function. Jaehyun almost falls but Taeyong manages to catch him on time, careful not to put too much pressure on the younger's torso as he knows from the doctor of his husband's injury.

They stay kneeling on the ground as Jaehyun shakily presses a hand to his husband’s cheek and takes his time looking at every inch of him.

He cannot believe it. From the day he woke up in the hospital to what felt like endless nights of sorrow, he mourned for the death of his love. Nights of bad dreams and days of longing accompanied him, taught him slowly to get accustomed to his new life. 

Jaehyun has already adjusted to the fact that he would grow old alone, take care of the twins alone, and recall the preserved memories of being in the filthy world of crime alone.

Yet Taeyong cannot take a break from proving him wrong. 

Tears finally flow down as Jaehyun cradles his husband’s face, feeling the heat from the scarred skin.

This is real. 

"God," Jaehyun croaks out through his sobs. “Taeyong.”

Taeyong expression isn’t betrayed by the bizarre sensation in his chest but he nods, holding Jaehyun close. “I’m here.”

_Vulnerability doesn't suit you_ _ㅡ_

“Taeyong.” Jaehyun repeats as he cannot wrap his mind around it, cannot fathom the reality. Lee Taeyong is right in front of him, in flesh, breathing and holding him so, _so_ close. Jaehyun face slots itself on the crook of Taeyong’s neck just to inhale his scent, and although he smells blood, he doesn’t recoil. Instead, Jaehyun wraps his arms around the older, careful not to crush his own torso. 

But who cares if he does crush his rib again? He will survive a pinch of soreness in his body but he doesn't want to ever go through the torture of losing Ethan again. 

Jaehyun can live through 103 of broken bones, but he will die a thousand times through one life without Taeyong. 

_Loving you is not what I was meant to do, but loving you is what I want to do for the rest of my days._

They let him sob as loud and as much as he needs. What Jaehyun is feeling right now can never be understood by anyone. His heart thunders violently, screaming in joy and in pain. Questions cause a stampede in his mind but he douses them all with acid so they burn and evaporate into nothingness. He doesn’t need answers.

He only needs to be held by this man for all times.

“I _hate_ you. You caused me so much suffering, Taeyong. I hope you know that. I hope you do not forget that.”

Taeyong soothingly rubs Jaehyun’s back, hoping that it is enough as an apology ㅡ because saying sorry won't change what has been done, saying sorry won't sweeten the bitter truth that he doesn't feel an ounce of regret leaving Jaehyun without a word, making him think of the worst thought. 

_I really made you suffer the most, didn't I? For you to cry like this..._

As his gaze leaves the twins standing with the squad, Taeyong presses a kiss to Jaehyun’s neck and whispers.

_“It is finished, love. I’m back, and I'm staying.”_

And he means it, heaven and hell know he means it _ㅡ_ truths and lies be damned. 

**EPILOGUE**

Working at a convenience store is not the best job out there. Honestly, there are much better choices. But for someone who doesn’t even have a high school diploma, there are no rights to be choosy.

Really.

What’s worse than being a part-time cashier at a 24/7 convenience store is the broken shift. It ends literally at 2 in the morning so there isn’t a single soul outside on the dark way home. Taxis are available, but the dangers of being kidnapped are always a reminder from France Today.

After all, once is enough and two is too much.

Luckily, work isn’t far away from home. Walking will only take about an hour.

_Why did I fucking choose to work there, out of all other stores anyway?_

_Oh right. That’s the only one accepting part-time._

Working dayshift could be helped, but a person who functions properly at night will not willingly work during the day.

Breakfast means 4 in the afternoon, dinner means during the wee hours of the night.

_Fuck my fucking body. And brain._

Her mental debate is halted when a series of footsteps echo from a fair distance behind.

She doesn’t stop walking, but she knows what it is.

Bordeaux may be beautiful during the day, but when the nighttime comes, it’s when the snakes crawl out of their lair.

Her speed doesn’t change. She walks how she usually does. The footsteps grow nearer, louder.

The sound of gloves being snapped on is loud amidst the dead silence of the night.

And when she feels a hand predictably grab her shoulder, she whips around and punches the face of the attacker not once, not twice, and she completely loses count of it as she kicks the other at the stomach.

The men are not discouraged despite targeting a skilled woman. Instead, their sick grins only mean they’re _excited._

She blows her bangs out of her eyes and shakes her hands, ready for a fight.

“I can do this all night, you know.”

Simultaneously, the men charge at her but she quickly dodges them, showcasing her years of agility training as she kicks one of them on the jaw and turning to seize the other’s arm, painfully twisting it to a dangerous angle. The man cries out and she lets go, only to grab him by the neck and _snap_ it.

The sound of it cracking followed by the limp body dropping to the floor scares the remaining attacker.

“Alright. One down, one to go.” She beckons him, smirking. “Come to me, darling.”

The man starts to run away.

But she cannot let that happen. Because if he manages to report her for murder, then she’s gonna get in trouble, right?

Her father isn’t actually keen on the idea of bailing his children out of jail.

“Well, you leave me no choice.”

She propels forward and pulls something out of her sling bag. It glints beneath the lamppost she passes by before it cuts through the air and pierces the man’s throat.

The man grasps his neck trying to stops the bleeding but blood gushes out pretty fast. He falls to his knees then and she yanks his head back before pushing the blade further, sending her attacker to his end.

When the man’s body drops to the ground, she takes the knife out and puts it back to her bag.

“Phew,” whistling for her victory, she gives one last kick to the guy’s stomach before continuing on her way, seemingly in a very good mood.

She lights a cigarette stick pinched by her still bloodied gloved hand and quickly inhales a lungful of it to help with the adrenaline.

“That’s what you get when you mess with Tanya.”

The gloves are already disposed in the bin near their house so when she steps inside and is greeted by her stern father, the evidence is long gone.

“Uh, hey? Why are you still up?”

“You took longer to get home, Haera.” Jaehyun states. “What kept you?”

“Me? Overtime.” She smiles sweetly like she didn’t just kill two men singlehandedly and gives her father a hug. “Don’t tell me you and Haechan both waited.”

“He’s going to scold you. Go to his room.

“Why should I? I’m not ten!”

Jaehyun shakes his head and breaks the hug. “You are 20 and you will go to your brother’s room to get the scolding of your life because I will not do it anymore. I’m getting gray hair because of you.”

Haera rolls her eyes before walking past Jaehyun.

“Wait a second,” Jaehyun stops her from climbing the stairs, eyebrow raised. “Why do you smell like cigarette?”

“Uh,” she blanches for a moment before throwing up a peace sign as if that could get her father out of her hair. “Overtime!”

Haera rushes to her room but a hand catches her arm, causing her to stumble and almost hit the wall. “What the–”

Taeyong looks at her knowingly before swiping over a smear of red on the back of her elbow. “Did it happen again?”

She furtively glances at where Jaehyun is but the man is gone, now probably in the kitchen to drink his daily wee hour glass of water.

“It’s not my fault. They tried to tou–”

“Silence.” Taeyong hears the familiar footsteps and turns towards the master’s bedroom, but not before reminding his daughter what he’s always told her to keep in mind.

_“As long as you leave no trace, do it like you’re meant to.”_

He smirks and pushes the door close, leaving a gap. Haera can only see one of his glinting blue eyes.

“ _Kill them all.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


End file.
